Thicker Than Water
by ckret2
Summary: When a clan has a kekkei genkai, it goes to extremes to maintain it. Even if a child becomes a slave within his twin's body. Will Ukon end up just Sakon's tool? How can the bond between brothers rise above a clan's oppression? Sakon and Ukon's childhood.
1. Identical Defect

A/N: This is my first really long fic for Naruto. Naturally, it's about someone from Otogakure. (Major Oto fangirl.) Obviously, it's about Sakon and Ukon, from their birth onwards. Things get progressively more messed up for them. Ho hum.

There will be quite a few OCs in this fic, due to necessity. For example, we don't know who Sakon and Ukon's parents are, so I had to make them up. But this fic is still starring Sakon and Ukon (more so when they get old enough to talk, heh), and there's not going to be any weird OC pairings, so don't worry about that.

I'm going to try, at least for a while, to write each chapter like its own story. That way if I get writer's block, I won't leave a cliffhanger.

Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Sakon, Ukon, their kekkei genkai, the Naruto world, and many fangirls' souls. I own Futago, Futan, Akusei, Dokusei, Mizuiri, the Shinken clan, and many less souls.

x

Thicker Than Water

Identical Defect

x

The Shinken clan was in an uproar over the birth of its latest twins. It was utterly shameful. This would never have happened if Futago hadn't married Mizuiri, who didn't even have a sister, much less a twin of her own. A shame, a terrible shame.

It had been years since something like this had happened. The last crisis had been some thirty-five years back, before Futago and his twin Futan had even been born. There was a poor little girl who had been born without a sister. This current crisis certainly wasn't as terrible, but Futago would never live this down. Mizuiri, not originally part of the clan, naturally had no idea what was wrong and was simply proud to have birthed two beautiful, healthy boys. And there lay the problem.

They were both equally beautiful. They were both equally healthy. They were both, in every way possible, completely identical twins. They certainly didn't look to be Shinken twins, though the doctors had said they possessed the clan's kekkei genkai – there was a bit of relief. Still, something had to be done about this problem, the fact that the twins were both healthy.

Which is why the Shinken elders had decided to pay a visit to Futago and Mizuiri.

Several days after the birth of the twins, Akusei knocked on the door of Futago's home, and stepped back to wait for a response. In a moment, a man opened the door. He was gaunt, pale, and shivering, eyes unfocused and mousy brown hair dangling limply around his face. He hunched forward in a slight bow and stepped back to let Akusei in.

Without bowing back, Akusei walked in and slipped his shoes off. "Futan. Where is Futago-san?"

Rather than answering, Futan turned and shuffled down a hall. Apparently, he'd been instructed to let their visitor in. Akusei followed until they reached an open room with a view of the garden in the back. Futago was already seated. He had been expecting a guest.

"Futago-san, it's good to see you." Akusei bowed slightly to Futago.

Futago looked up with a sharp gaze, and smiled slightly. He bent forward from where he sat to return the bow. "It's good to see you as well, Akusei-sama," he said as his twin crouched behind him and slipped back into his body. Futago looked like a much healthier version of his brother; he was wiry and strong, fair-skinned, with light brown hair neatly framing his face. "I've been waiting for someone to come any day now."

Akusei sat across from Futago. "The elders have been discussing what to do with your children. We didn't want to get you involved until we came to a decision."

"I see," Futago said. He appeared tense, worried. "It won't be as bad as before, will it?"

He was referring to the girl who had been born alone, thirty-five years ago. The clan didn't have the resources to raise a child who wouldn't be able to utilize their kekkei genkai, but putting her up for adoption in the village would have given outsiders a chance to learn the secrets of the Shinken's bloodline. She had been put to death.

"No, no, of course not," Akusei said. Futago simply nodded, but Akusei heard Futan sigh with relief. From Akusei's back, his twin Dokusei laughed, a quiet wheezing.

Futago was one of the most stolid, unemotional members of the clan, but his twin was quite a different story. Akusei remembered once when Futago was a child he'd gone with a few friends to watch a tragic play. Futago had sat like a statue through the whole performance, except towards the end when he kept passing tissues over his shoulder to his sobbing brother.

"You've come up with an arrangement, then?" Futago asked.

"We have," Akusei said. "We decided that it would be best to treat them as if they were any other set of Shinken twins. I think it will be easier for everyone, especially them."

Futago frowned. "I'm sorry, but how would that work? They're almost identical, not like our normal twins."

Akusei nodded. "We've taken this into account, Futago-san. Don't worry."

"I'm sorry, Akusei-sama. Please, go on."

Normal Shinken twins were not born equal. One always came out a healthy, strong baby, and the other was frail and sickly from the start. From its first days of life, the sickly twin was placed inside its healthier sibling, and they learned to live together. When the twins grew older, the healthy, dominant one was admitted as a member of the Shinken clan and began training as a ninja. The inferior one lived inside its twin, to be used as a tool in battle and in daily life.

Of course, this was a little tricky when the twins were identical.

"One of the twins will be put inside the other, as usual," Akusei said. "Within a few years his muscles will begin to atrophy, correct?"

Futago nodded slowly. "That's true…"

"In that case, before long he will be considerably weaker than his brother," Akusei said. "By the time they are toddlers one will be dominant and one will be inferior. It will be as if they were born that way."

"I see. It makes sense," Futago said. "But are the elders certain the inferior will atrophy properly?"

"No, we aren't," Akusei said. "However, our only alternative is to give one of them surgery, to make him weaker. That's the surest way to solve the problem."

"Mizuiri would never accept that," Futago said with an apologetic smile.

"I know," Akusei said. Mizuiri was not part of the Shinken. She didn't understand the measures an advanced clan had to take to preserve a kekkei genkai.

"We will accept your first offer," Futago said.

Akusei nodded and stood. "Would you like to take some time to think about which twin you would like to be dominant?"

"No, it's best to do this now," Futago said, standing as well. He turned and left the room. "The twins are this way."

Mizuiri had just finished bathing the twins and was dressing them again when she heard footsteps in the hall. She glanced up as the four men – she refused to think of them as only two men, they had their twins with them after all – walked into the room.

"I take it you've come up with a solution?" she said warily, brushing a few strands of blue hair out of her face. She was clearly not Shinken in appearance, even ignoring the fact that she had no twin. Mizuiri had light, almost dusty blue eyes and hair, whereas the Shinken had black eyes and universally brown hair. The twins had already inherited their father's eyes. Mizuiri hoped they'd at least get her hair.

Akusei glanced at Futago, allowing him to give the news to his wife. He stepped closer and put one hand on her shoulder as he spoke to her. "We've decided to treat them like other Shinken twins. We'll place one in the other and let them grow like that."

Mizuiri didn't meet Futago's eyes. "I thought you might," she said. "I never thought I'd marry into a clan where being born healthy is a birth defect."

Futago winced. "Mizuiri, don't think of it like that," he said. "You knew about our kekkei genkai when we married. You understood what it would mean if we had children."

"I could have handled raising a sick child!" Mizuiri said. "I didn't think I'd have to help make him sick."

"Mizu-chan…" Futago reached up to stroke Mizuiri's cheek, and she knocked his hand away.

"Don't you Mizu-chan me!" Mizuiri snapped. "We are not school children anymore, Futago! These are your sons. Can you do this to one of them?"

"I'd be an irresponsible parent if I didn't," Futago said.

Mizuiri glared at him. "I can't argue with you, can I?" she said. "Fine. Do what you have to. But you won't have my support."

"I'm sorry," Futago said. "Mizuiri, would you like to choose which one of them will be dominant?"

"Don't make a mother choose between her children," she said. She crossed her arms, taking a few steps back, far enough to allow Futago to work but close enough to protect her babies.

Futago looked at his children, uncertain. They were lying beside each other in their crib, damp from their bath, squirming slightly, and they still looked identical.

"Are you having trouble deciding?" Akusei asked, stepping up beside Futago.

"This is harder than I thought it would be," Futago confessed.

Akusei nodded. "What are their names?"

"Ukon and Sakon," Futago said. Named for the two connected sticks of a nunchaku, Left and Right.

"Strong names," Akusei said approvingly. "But is the right hand not usually dominant to the left hand?"

Futago considered this advice. Right is stronger than Left, so Sakon would be stronger than Ukon. "I understand," he said. "Futan?"

Futan silently slipped out of his brother and stood beside him. "You take Ukon," Futago said, pointing to the child on the left.

"Yes," Futan said, barely a whisper, lifting up Ukon enough to undress him but being careful enough to hold him low in the crib, so if his trembling grip slipped Ukon would not fall. Mizuiri noticed this.

Futago only had to take off Sakon's shirt. He placed his hand on Sakon's back, channeling in a bit of chakra to his spine. Activating Shinken siblings' kekkei genkai the first time required some effort, but it became easier after that.

Meanwhile, Futan was struggling to channel chakra through Ukon's entire body. He wasn't trained in ninjutsu the way his brother was, and he also had a much larger area to cover. Finally, he exhaled softly. "Ready."

Futago nodded, and held Sakon face down. Futan lifted Ukon over him, placing his feet first on Sakon's back, and as his feet started to slide him he slowly pushed Ukon down into Sakon. Mizuiri stood to the side, biting her thumb until it bled to keep herself from demanding her husband to stop. As bad as this was, if she refused to go through with it then they might do something even worse to her children.

Ukon and Sakon slid together without a sound, only wiggling a little bit the way babies do. But when Ukon was almost fully inside Sakon and only his shoulders were poking out, he suddenly reached out with one hand and grabbed Futan's left thumb.

Futan froze. Even his trembling stopped. He stared directly into Ukon's eyes as Ukon squeezed his thumb.

"I'm sorry, nephew," Futan whispered. Futago gave his brother a quick, bewildered look. Never before had Futan spoken when it wasn't necessary.

Quickly, Futan shook Ukon's hand off his thumb and pushed him the rest of the way into his brother's body. Ukon looked around calmly at the outside world, not at all bothered by the fact that he was now just a head sticking out of Sakon's back.

Futago set Sakon down in the crib, sitting upright, and dressed him. He was sure to leave the collar of his shirt wide open so it wouldn't choke Ukon. "We're finished," Futago said as Futan slipped into his back again.

Mizuiri nodded tightly, now biting her other thumb and trying not to cry. A ninja must not show emotions under any circumstance, even for the sake of her children.

Futago couldn't think of any words of comfort, so he turned to Akusei. "Thank you for your help, Akusei-sama. I'll show you out," he said.

As they walked away, Futan lifted his head and gazed directly into Mizuiri's eyes. He cried for her.

x

Mizuiri had never slept in the same bed as Futago for a full night. They had tried early on in their marriage, but Mizuiri hated having to share the bed with her brother-in-law and Futan was too weak to spend an entire night in a bed by himself. So she'd slept in her own bed. When the twins were born, it had been easy for her to move into their room so she could care for them at night. It also allowed her some degree of privacy with them.

This could all be very useful.

The first night the twins were connected, Mizuiri sat up for hours, getting used to cradling them in her arms without covering one of their faces with her arm. She'd have to go to other Shinken mothers tomorrow and ask them how they did it.

A soft knock came at the door. "Come in," Mizuiri called, expecting Futago to come in. To her surprise, it was Futan – unless Futago had lost twenty pounds and developed Parkinson's disease in the last few hours. "Futan-san?"

"Yes," Futan said softly, walking unsteadily to Mizuiri's bed and sitting heavily beside her. "I need to talk."

"That's fine," Mizuiri said. "I'm listening. What is it?"

He took a moment to catch his breath, and then looked at Ukon and Sakon in Mizuiri's arms. "He doesn't have to be like me," Futan finally said. "They were both born like Futago."

Mizuiri stared at Futan. He had never said this much at one time, as far as she knew. "I… Thank you, Futan," she said. A lump formed in her throat. She imagined Ukon one day, feeble like Futan. Could she still prevent that?

Without a word, Futan reached forward and placed his hand between Ukon and Sakon's heads. He pressed his fingers to where their spines met, and carefully lifted Ukon's head. Ukon slid easily out of Sakon's back until both twins were separate. "An old trick to draw a Shinken from another's body," Futan explained. "Lift them from the spine and they come out."

"I'll remember that," Mizuiri said, looking at her children.

Futan stood unsteadily, and Mizuiri automatically reached out with her left hand to help him to his feet. "If they sleep separately at night, Ukon might not get too weak," Futan said. "It will just take a little chakra now to put Ukon back inside Sakon each morning."

Mizuiri nodded. The lump was now large enough that she didn't think she could speak around it without crying.

Futan shuffled to the door, saying, "I have to get back before Futago wakes and finds out I'm missing." He shut the door behind himself.

Cradling Sakon and Ukon in one arm each, Mizuiri stood up and placed them in their crib on opposite ends. As she was walking back to her own bed, she heard a loud thump in the hallway.

Mizuiri hurried outside to help Futan to his feet and guide him back to Futago's bedroom. Meanwhile, Sakon and Ukon slept, peacefully and separately.

Until Sakon needed his diaper changed at three in the morning.

x

A/N: I know there are some people obsessed with looking up the meanings of character names, myself being one of them, so for those who care: Futago means "twin" and Futan means "a burden" (poor Futan). Akusei means "malignant cancer" and Dokusei means "toxicity." Mizuiri's name comes from mizuiro, which means "light blue." Shinken is the surname of the man who helped save the Kobudo martial arts, which is where the nunchaku comes from, and a shinken is also a kind of Japanese sword.

Please review! The hits counter might tell me how many people clicked on my story, but they don't tell me whether or not anyone read past the first paragraph. If you read this far, please let me know. Praise makes me squee, concrit makes me write better, and flames make me laugh. Let me know what you think!


	2. Opposites Attract but Twins Repel

Yay for foreshadowing this chapter. And we finally find out what village the Shinken are from. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I still do not own the things I did not own last chapter. I also do not own Akatsuki, the Sannin, or ANBU. I might own the Kusagakure ANBU, since I made them up. I also own the Komugi family, Yasoumaru, Jiro, and Natsugusa. (I promise, we won't be getting another load of new characters for a while. This should be the end of it.)

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Thicker Than Water

Opposites Attract but Twins Repel

x

Futago had never expected raising a family to be easy. Especially not since both he and Mizuiri were always busy; Kusagakure, the Village Hidden in the Grass, was perpetually struggling to get missions that often went to larger, neighboring shinobi villages like Iwagakure and Konohagakure. Over the past few years, he and Mizuiri often had to take turns staying home with Sakon and Ukon while the other went on a mission – Mizuiri would have preferred to stay with the children more, but she'd recently been assigned three genin to train and had to go on more missions with them. So Futago stayed home Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays (far too often for his tastes) while Mizuiri stayed home Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays (far too seldom for her tastes), and both had Sunday off.

Today, to Futago's chagrin, was Wednesday. As he prepared the twins' lunch, he wondered how Mizuiri was always so cheerful after taking care of them alone for a day. After all, they were three years old now, and quite active troublemakers.

No, raising a family wasn't easy. But Futago never thought he'd have to chase down both twins separately.

While making lunch, Futago had sat Sakon and Ukon down on the kitchen floor while he prepared some sausage and a rice ball for Sakon's meal; he didn't have to feed Ukon, since he got food through his brother.

A loud bang and a clatter came from behind Futago. He turned around to discover Sakon had knocked over a chair while trying to climb into it. "Sakon," Futago said scornfully, quickly setting the chair upright and picking the child up. "What are you doing?"

"I wanna sit, Daddy," Sakon said, pointing at the chair. "Up!"

"Not when I'm fixing your food," Futago said, placing Sakon on the ground again. "You might fall."

"No!" Sakon said stubbornly. "Up!"

"In a few minutes," Futago said, turning back to the food. "After I finish…"

He stopped, turned around, and looked at Sakon's back. "Sakon," he said slowly. "Where is your twin?"

Sakon shrugged. "Naked," he said.

Of course he was. Ukon didn't have his own clothes. Futago shut his eyes, willing himself to be patient.

It worked until he heard Futan giggling.

" You didn't tell me where your brother is," Futago said sharply. "Where did he go?"

Sakon looked down to ignore Futago's glare, but that only emphasized the fact that his brother was missing from the back of his neck. "I don't…"

"Then find him!"

"Okay!" Sakon squeaked fearfully, turning and dashing out of the kitchen.

Futago sighed, then sat down in the chair he'd set upright to wait. This was the second time today that Ukon had slipped out of Sakon and hid. It was becoming a regular occurrence. Sakon wasn't very helpful either; he almost seemed to want to keep Ukon outside him.

And he hadn't come back yet. Futago glanced at the clock. Sakon had been gone five minutes. Annoyed, he stood up to look for the twins. How well could an inferior twin hide itself?

As he walked towards the twins' room, he heard light footsteps running in the hall, followed by a door quickly closing. Ukon couldn't run that well, which meant Sakon was hiding, too. Futago scowled as he approached the door. What were they up to?

He opened the door and was met by two shrill yelps of alarm. "Sakon, what do you think you're…" He trailed off, speechless with anger.

Sakon and Ukon were sitting together on the floor, stark naked.

"We both Sakon now," Sakon said.

"Me too," Ukon added, his voice a little hoarse from disuse.

The twins had yet to figure out that their parents could tell them apart from their hair (which had indeed ended up looking like Mizuiri's). Sakon's hair was combed towards the right, and Ukon's to the left. Also, they weren't quite as identical as they thought. Sakon was already fairly healthier-looking than Ukon. The way a dominant twin should be.

But not the way he was acting.

"Stop this nonsense immediately!" Futago said sharply. He scooped up Ukon roughly and pushed his legs into Sakon's back; Ukon slid in without resistance, unable to control his kekkei genkai. "Sakon, put your clothes back on and get in the kitchen!"

Sakon nodded, too frightened to answer. Futago turned and stomped back to the kitchen, fuming.

What Shinken inferior tried to leave its twin, especially as often as Ukon did? What Shinken dominant wanted his twin outside him, especially as much as Sakon did? What was wrong with them? They were only three years old, but their behavior was a shame to the clan.

A few minutes later, Sakon silently walked into the room and stood against the wall farthest from Futago, almost leaning against the wallpaper but not quite – he didn't want to squish Ukon's face. Futago set Sakon's plate of food on the table and pulled out the chair so he could help Sakon get on it.

Fidgeting nervously, Sakon asked, "Go eat in my room?"

Futago gave him a suspicious look. "Why do you want to?"

"I wanna," Sakon said. He wasn't the greatest of communicators.

"Are you going to let Ukon out again?"

"No."

Fine. As long as Sakon didn't hurt himself or allow his brother to escape, Futago didn't care where he ate.

Futago almost handed the plate to Sakon, but realized the three-year-old wouldn't be able to carry it. "Futan."

"Yes," Futan said, stepping out and taking the plate. He had been obeying Futago so long, he could usually guess what he wanted without being told.

As Futan walked Sakon to his room, Sakon grinned shyly up at him and said, "Thanks, Uncle Futan."

Futago looked up sharply, but Futan was already out of sight.

He had never told Sakon to call Futan that. Futan was not Sakon's uncle. He was an extension of Futago's will, a necessary tool for the Shinken kekkei genkai. In essence, he was hardly a person.

Futan came back a few minutes later with his eyes cast vaguely downwards, looking no different than usual. Certainly not embarrassed, certainly not like he was hiding anything.

"Why did Sakon call you 'uncle'?" Futago demanded.

Futan glanced at Futago, surprised. It wasn't often Futago addressed him directly. He shook his head feebly and shrugged, signifying that he didn't know.

Futago exhaled sharply, frustrated. "Fine." Futan slipped back into his body as if nothing had happened.

The whole "uncle" thing was probably Mizuiri's doing. She was the only one Sakon and Ukon came in contact with that thought of inferior twins as equal to dominants. He would have to talk to her about that tonight.

Meanwhile, in their room, Sakon was obeying his father's instructions and not letting Ukon leave his body. He sat on the floor with his plate behind him, where Ukon could reach out with his arms and feed himself. After all, Sakon reasoned, his brother had to eat too.

x

Mizuiri didn't get home until almost ten. She was almost always back in time to help Futago put the twins to bed. They both made such a fuss when their mother wasn't around to tuck them in.

Thoroughly exhausted, Futago was on the brink of ordering Futan to take care of the twins, when the door opened and Mizuiri called, "I'm home!"

Futago sighed with relief, scooping up Sakon to carry him to Mizuiri. "Thank goodness. Why were you so late?"

"I had to stay late with Yasoumaru-kun, one of my students," Mizuiri said, taking Sakon from Futago. "His parents didn't get back until just a little bit ago and he was worried. They'd left their other two children at home alone, too, so I couldn't leave them like that. The youngest is only three years old."

"I see," Futago said. Mizuiri was so protective of children now, her own or others. "What family are they from?"

"Komugi. I don't think they're a well-known clan," Mizuiri said.

She was right. Futago didn't recognize the name. "Is this a regular occurrence for them?"

"I don't know," Mizuiri said. "Yasoumaru-kun hasn't mentioned being left alone before."

"Hmm." Futago didn't care either way about these other kids, who weren't even part of the clan. But of course Mizuiri did. "The next time they're by themselves, get their neighbor to watch them."

Mizuiri frowned; Futago had been like this so much lately, ordering Mizuiri around. As if she were a Shinken inferior. "If it's convenient," she said coolly. She turned and walked away. "I'll put the twins in bed," she called over her shoulder. "And don't let them stay up this late again!"

Futago sighed and headed to his room. Mizuiri could get mad over how late Sakon was up if she wanted. He, however, was exhausted. It would be a relief to go on a mission tomorrow.

He had completely forgotten to talk to Mizuiri about the twins' behavior.

x

"You behaved yourselves today, didn't you?" Mizuiri asked the twins quietly. The only light in her room was a single lamp. Futago had already gone to bed, and she didn't want to do anything that might attract his attention. After all, she was taking a huge risk every night.

"Yes," Sakon said as Mizuiri set him down in his bed; the twins had outgrown their crib long ago. She waited until Ukon had crawled out of Sakon and lay down beside him, then she tucked them both in.

"That's good," she said. "What about you, Ukon?"

"Yeah," he said.

She nodded. "I'm glad. Remember, you can't separate around when Daddy's watching, okay?"

"We know!" Sakon said eagerly. "We did when Daddy look away."

"Make sure you keep doing that, okay?" Mizuiri said, and when both boys had nodded, she bent down and kissed them on the forehead. "I love you both. Good night."

"Love you. 'Night," the twins echoed.

Mizuiri turned off the lamp and they went to bed.

x

It was past midnight when the Komugi family was finally in bed. But that didn't mean they were all asleep.

Even though he was in bed, Yasoumaru was very much awake. His parents hadn't seemed normal when they got home. They seemed scared for some reason, and that made Yasoumaru scared as well, too scared for him to ask what had happened. But he had at least gotten an idea of his own about what was going on.

He lifted his head a few inches to glance at the two beds on each side of his own. One had his six-year-old brother, Jiro; Natsugusa, his three-year-old sister, was in the other. They seemed to be fast asleep, so Yasoumaru slid out of bed and crouched on the floor, moving with all the silent stealth of a rookie genin. It was, at least, stealthy enough that his siblings didn't wake up.

Yasoumaru pulled a scroll out from under his bed. He'd taken it from the pocket of his mother's black coat, which she'd draped over the back of a chair after coming home, and hidden it until he could look at it in private. He shuffled on his knees to the window, and held the scroll on the windowsill to read it. Stamped on the outside were the words "Kusa ANBU S-Rank Mission – Security: TOP SECRET."

This wasn't the first time Yasoumaru had taken a peek at his parents' mission info. At eleven years old, Yasoumaru had realized long ago that when his parents were gone on missions for ANBU, it was his responsibility to watch after Jiro and Natsugusa. Therefore, he was also responsible for knowing what his parents were doing. So Yasoumaru carefully unrolled the scroll and started reading.

It wasn't long before Yasoumaru heard Jiro climb out of bed and walk to the window. "What's it say?" Jiro whispered.

"It's about the weird group they've been following," Yasoumaru said. "The one that's hiding here in the Land of Grass."

"The one made of missing-nin?"

"Yeah." Yasoumaru had been reading about the group in the ANBU mission info for almost three years now. Once a squad of six ANBU had been sent after the group, after one of Kusagakure's own – Kamibana Zetsu – had defected to the group. None of them survived. Since then, Kusagakure had reluctantly watched the group from afar.

"Did they do something?" Jiro asked. His eyes were wide with excitement. At six, the world of shinobi was still just fun for him.

"They got a new member," Yasoumaru whispered back. "Someone from Konohagakure. He's one of the 'Densetsu no Sannin'." Densetsu no Sannin, the Legendary Three Ninja. Yasoumaru had never heard of the Densetsu no Sannin before, but they sounded powerful. Also, anyone from Konohagakure had to be dangerous.

"Wow," Jiro breathed. "That's so cool."

Yasoumaru glared at Jiro. "Not if he kills Mom and Dad."

Jiro just nodded, uncomprehending.

Sighing, Yasoumaru rolled up the scroll. "Go back to sleep. I have to put this back in Mom's coat."

"Okay." Jiro obediently climbed back into his bed as Yasoumaru quietly left the room.

Meanwhile, Natsugusa lay silently awake, listening as her brothers talked. She didn't have any idea what was going on. However, something in her three-year-old mind processed the words enough to decide that this Densetsu no Sannin, this Konoha missing-nin, was a very scary person.

Someday, she'd learn she was right.

x

A/N: Once again, name meanings: the "yasou" in Yasoumaru means "field grass." Jiro means "second son" (the first normal Japanese name so far). Natsugusa means "summer grass." Komugi means "wheat." Kamibana, the name of Zetsu's clan, means "paper flowers offered at a funeral." Since they're in Kusagakure, we've got a lot of grass-themed names this time.

Please review! Signed-in or anonymous, both are fine with me. (But if you ask a question in an anonymous review, remember to leave an email or something so I can answer you.) Thanks!


	3. The Trophy Child

And finally, this chapter is finished! I thought I'd never get it done, and then I ended up having to divide this chapter in half, it was so long. Go figure. So, chapter 4 will be ready to go soon. Yayness.

Disclaimer: Everything from before still applies. I own the Kamibana clan, they own the Spirit Meadows, and Kishimoto owns Zetsu.

x

Thicker Than Water

The Trophy Child

x

"Mommy?" Sakon whispered, looking up at Mizuiri. "Can he come out now?"

Mizuiri squeezed Sakon's hand once and shook her head slightly. "Not in public, Sakon." She glanced down at her son – sons. Ukon had his head lifted enough to glance at her, but when he noticed her look he ducked down again.

Sakon was starting school in three weeks. Just Sakon, because even though Ukon was going to be with him, he wasn't officially enrolled as a student. So Mizuiri was taking Sakon – and, consequently, his brother – school shopping.

Mizuiri would have liked to let Ukon out of Sakon. On the days when she stayed home with the twins, she let them play separately as much as they wanted. However, that wouldn't work today, when they were in public. Even though they weren't in Shinken clan territory, plenty of clan members were around. Besides, almost everyone recognized everyone else in Kusagakure. It wasn't a very large village.

"Okay," Sakon said, finally relenting. "Carry me?"

"Sakon, you're getting too big to be carried!" Mizuiri said, smiling. "You're almost six. That's old enough to walk by yourself."

"Please?" Sakon wheedled, grabbing Mizuiri's hand with both of his and tugging her. "I wanna ride."

Mizuiri sighed. "All right, but only until we get to the store," she said. "Do you want to ride piggy-back?"

Sakon paused a moment. "No," he finally said. "Carry me on front?"

The pause, Mizuiri had figured out long ago, meant Ukon was whispering something to Sakon. "All right," Mizuiri said, lifting Sakon. He wrapped his arms around her neck and his legs around her waist. From this point of view, Sakon could only see backwards over Mizuiri's shoulder, but Ukon could see forward.

Mizuiri whispered in Ukon's ear, "Keep your head low." Shinken inferiors (how she hated that word!) weren't supposed to interact with the outside world at all. Ukon would be in trouble if anyone saw him with his head up.

Carrying the twins this way, Mizuiri headed across the empty hill in the middle of the village to go to the shopping district.

Surrounded by the Spirit Meadows – the grasslands where the Kamibana clan buried dead Kusanin – Kusagakure had been built like a spider web; streets and paths all branched out from the center of the village, with roads crossing between and connecting these primary streets. In the center was the grassy hill that Mizuiri was currently crossing, with nothing built on it except a small, sealed, stone temple, covered in moss. This was the final resting place of Kusagakure's strongest weapon, which had been used by the first Kusakage. Mizuiri had to pass the sealed temple to get to the other side of the village, where the store she was looking for was located.

She stopped in front of the temple, standing in grass that reached her thigh; very few people walked this close to the temple and no one wanted to cut the grass around it. Carved down one of the walls, the characters almost obscured by moss, was the weapon's proper name: Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi. Mizuiri studied the temple for only a moment, and then moved on.

Mizuiri was one of only a few people in the village that knew the weapon did not rest in the sealed temple, and never had. It would be too easy to steal. In fact, several years ago, when Kamibana Zetsu had become a missing-nin and left Kusagakure, he had tried to take the weapon with him. If the weapon had been here, Zetsu would have succeeded.

The real guardians of the weapon were the members of the Shinken clan. It was hidden somewhere in their district of the village. Only the Shinken elders knew exactly where the weapon was, and the other clan members would die to protect it.

"Mommy?" Sakon said, fidgeting.

"All right, we're going," Mizuiri said. She shifted her hold on Sakon and walked past the empty temple.

x

Three hours later, they had gotten over half of Sakon's school supplies. They'd done more running around than Mizuiri had expected. Most of the stores for trainee ninja supplies had closed since she'd visited them as a child. It saddened her to think how much the village had shrunk. Rumors were going around that this year the village only had two genin teams to send to the Chuunin Exams in Konohagakure. One of the teams was Mizuiri's, and the other was still a rookie team.

The war between Iwagakure and Konohagakure a few years ago had done nothing to slow the village's decline. Even though Kusagakure had refused to get involved, the fact that they were in a tiny nation right between the two superpowers meant that many Grass-nin were caught in their crossfire. During his short reign one of the many things the Fourth Hokage of Konohagakure had vowed to do was to give them funds to rebuild their village, even if he couldn't help bring back their dead. When he was killed, the Third didn't follow through on the promise.

But at least one thing hadn't changed about the village: Wasanbon, the best confectionery shop in Kusagakure. By early afternoon, even though they'd gotten lunch, Sakon was getting cranky. So, Mizuiri took him to Wasanbon for a treat with his promise that he would behave himself for the rest of the afternoon. It didn't quite work out like that.

"But Mommy, I wanna go home," Sakon moaned. He swung his legs back and forth underneath his bench, trying to kick the bench on the other side of the table. "I'm tired of shopping. Can we go later?"

"School starts in just a few weeks," Mizuiri said, sighing. "You have to be ready before then."

"I gotta be ready now?"

"Sakon…" Mizuiri leaned closer to him to whisper. "Why can't you complain a little less, like Ukon?"

Sakon cast a resentful glance over his shoulder, and whispered back, "He doesn't has to walk around all the time like me."

"That's no excuse," Mizuiri said.

Ukon spoke, his voice raspy. "You're lucky, Sakon," he said quietly. "At least they let you walk."

That silenced both Sakon and Mizuiri.

"Sorry, Ukon," Sakon finally muttered. Ukon didn't answer, at least not where Mizuiri could hear.

While Sakon was eating his treat (he'd chosen taiyaki, a fish-shaped cake with chocolate filling) Mizuiri looked over their shopping list. They'd gotten most of Sakon's school supplies: pencils, crayons, scrolls, book bag, and the like. Students who were enrolled in the ninja program also needed practice kunai, which were smaller, lighter, and less sharp than real ones.

These days, more and more families in Kusagakure were civilian, so the elementary schools weren't true Ninja Academies. Students who were going to become ninja received their training while the rest of their class had regular physical education. Kusanin graduated earlier than most other villages because the genin needed to be trained earlier in teams with jounin teachers, because the schools couldn't teach them enough.

Mizuiri flipped through her list. They'd already gotten all of Sakon's clothes except for his shirts; those had to be purchased in a clothing shop specifically for Shinken twins. He also still needed shoes, and the shop where they'd found the practice kunai didn't have any child-sized kunai pouch belts or practice shuriken. Mizuiri frowned. They could run around town all day trying to find all these things.

"Are you finished?" Mizuiri asked.

"Yeah," Sakon said. His taiyaki was long gone. He pointed at the one on the plate in front of Mizuiri. "Are you gonna eat yours, Mommy?"

Mizuiri wasn't particularly fond of taiyaki. "I'll eat it when I get home." She wrapped the cake in a napkin and tucked it into her kunai pouch, being sure to keep it away from the actual weapons. After all, Ukon deserved to have a snack, too.

"Let's go," she said, picking Sakon up. They'd look for practice shuriken first.

x

It had been two years since the last Shinken member had started school, a little girl (and her twin). The next wouldn't be for another three years. Since there were so few children in their clan, the Shinken elders liked to visit a new student's home and immediate family, to congratulate them and remind them that they were representing the clan.

So, that afternoon, Akusei dropped by the home of Futago and Mizuiri.

He knocked on the door and waited patiently for an answer. It didn't come. After a long moment, he knocked again. Still nothing.

He frowned. Both Futago and Mizuiri were active ninja, but he knew one of them always stayed home with Sakon. Also, he could hear sounds from inside the house. Surely, someone was there?

"Hello?" he called, puzzled.

"Coming!" a child shouted, and a moment later Sakon – it could only be Sakon, he had his mother's hair – opened the door, holding a half-eaten taiyaki. He took in Akusei's robes of the elders, with the double-flowered symbol of the Shinken clan stitched onto his chest, and immediately bowed. "Hello, Shinken-sama," he said. "You can come in."

"Thank you very much," Akusei said. He noticed when Sakon bowed that his brother was absent. "Sakon-kun, where is Ukon? Did you send him to do something else?"

"I'm Ukon," he said, stepping back to let Akusei in.

Akusei looked sharply at Ukon. He could have sworn he was his brother. The inferior looked far too healthy. Akusei was glad to see that Ukon had learned how to keep a set of clothes on him when he went into his brother's body so he'd be dressed when he came out; most inferiors couldn't be taught that technique until they were eight or nine.

But now that he knew he wasn't speaking to the dominant, Akusei glanced away and said simply, "Take me to Sakon-kun."

"Okay," Ukon said, jogging down the hall ahead of Akusei until he reached the living room. "Sakon, it's a elder! He wants t' see you."

Akusei looked into the room to see Sakon sprawled out in front of a comic book. He glanced up, but instead of addressing Akusei, he spoke to his brother. "Thanks, Ukon."

"Sure."

Odd, Akusei thought, for a dominant to address his inferior like an equal. He supposed it was Mizuiri's doing…

Then, to Akusei's shock, instead of slipping back inside Sakon, Ukon flopped down on the carpet beside him to look at the comic, taking a bite out of his taiyaki as he did.

"What's going on in here?" Akusei demanded. Both Sakon and Ukon glanced at him, identical cluelessness on their faces. "Sakon-kun, why is Ukon outside you?"

Sakon thought a moment, and shrugged. "Mommy is home today."

"Pardon?" Akusei said.

He heard a slight intake of breath from the hall and turned towards the sound. Mizuiri was standing a few feet from Akusei with a horrified look on her face. "Oh, Akusei-sama," she said quietly. "I didn't know you were coming today."

It was too clear from her face that she knew exactly what Akusei had just seen. And she understood, outsider though she was, what the twins' actions meant.

She was not innocent in this matter.

"Mommy?"

Mizuiri and Akusei looked down as one of the twins, Akusei could not tell if it was Sakon or his inferior, stood against the living room entrance.

"What's wrong?" the twin asked curiously, looking at Mizuiri's face.

Mizuiri quickly walked towards him and scooped him up. "Get back in your brother, Ukon," she whispered, her voice trembling. She was pale as she pulled Sakon to his feet from the floor and made sure Ukon slipped into him. "Go to your room, and stay there until I say you can come out. Akusei-sama and I need to discuss things."

"But Mommy," Sakon protested, eyes wide with fright. "What did we—"

"Just go!" Mizuiri snapped.

Sakon jumped and his eyes filled with tears. Ukon twisted around, trying to see over Sakon's shoulder.

Relenting, Mizuiri got on her knees and gave her sons a hug. "I'm sorry. You didn't do anything wrong. Either of you. We're just discussing adult things now and you can't listen, okay?"

Sakon nodded. His face was screwed up like he was trying not to start wailing, and he ran out of the room. But before he had completely left, Ukon lifted his head and said, "Sorry, Mommy."

As well the inferior should be, thought Akusei.

"Now then, Mizuiri-san," Akusei said, walking into the room. Mizuiri had crouched down to pick up Sakon's comic book, but she stood quickly. "I think it's time we had a little discussion."

x

"I'm hungry," Sakon whispered. "Can we get food?"

Ukon remained silent, listening. He could hear the adults yelling outside their room. Mommy, Daddy, and the elder Shinken-sama.

"No! Not to my son! What kind of father…"

"…better for them both! He was born wrong…"

"…utterly disgraceful. Mizuiri-san, you should be ashamed of what you've…"

Ukon shook his head and whispered hoarsely, "No. Daddy sounds really mad."

"Okay," Sakon said, nodding.

"…mutilate him? Futago, your own…"

"…would not be necessary if you hadn't…"

"…he could have atrophied properly! But you, you had to…"

"Think they're talking 'bout you again," Sakon said. "Daddy's family always calls you a trophy."

Ukon didn't answer. In his five years of life, if his father had managed to teach him anything, it was that he was safer silent.

"Please, no!" Mizuiri shouted, desperation in her voice.

Sakon and Ukon both jumped, and locked gazes with each other. Identical terror shined in the brothers' dark eyes.

"You can't do this to him!" she said. "Futago, please, he's your first son… Akusei-sama, you must understand that these aren't normal Shinken boys! You can't treat them like they are!"

"Mizuiri, Ukon is weaker now than any healthy boy should be!" Futago said. "But he's still not an inferior! What does this make him? Just a common cripple? Is that what you want?"

"It's better than what you have in mind!"

The voices grew quiet again, and Sakon and Ukon both pressed their ears against their door to listen. Sakon frowned. "I can't hear," he whispered.

Ukon shut his eyes, listening closely. "They're saying they don't hafta do something if Mommy won't mess it up." He frowned. "Mommy doesn't mess up."

Sakon nodded enthusiastically in agreement. She couldn't do anything wrong.

"She said she'll go away and take us," Ukon said.

"Take us where?" Sakon asked.

Ukon shrugged. It was so confusing.

"They says they'll kill us if she makes us missing-nin."

Sakon's eyes went wide, and Ukon opened his. They had heard the term before but weren't sure what a missing-nin was. However, they knew it was bad. And being killed was worse. Sakon had to blink heavily as tears started to well in his eyes, and Ukon squeezed his eyes shut again.

"Daddy and Shinken-sama are talking 'bout forcing a trophy," he whispered, his raspy voice shaking.

"Do they mean you?" Sakon asked. His voice was quite a pitiful whine. He was wiping both eyes with his hands now, but crying nonetheless. Tears leaked out from under Ukon's eyelids as well.

"I dunno," he said.

Sakon and Ukon sat down in front of the door and listened to the adults' shouts, crying together.

x

A/N: I edited chapter 2 to mention Zetsu so his clan name's defined there, but for those who missed it, Kamibana means "paper flowers offered at a funeral." Wasanbon is a kind of sugar used in Japanese food. And taiyaki really is a fish-shaped cake with filling. (I want to try taiyaki…) Thanks for reading, and please review!


	4. Heard It Through The Grapevine

Whee, exciting things this chapter. Thank you for the reviews and thank you very much for reading. Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I still do not own the things that I did not own last chapter (though I've sent a polite letter to Kishi asking for a few of the filler characters, since he won't be using them anymore). I still own the plot, the Shinken clan, the Kamibana clan, and other random plot things.

x

Thicker Than Water

Heard It Through The Grapevine

x

It was almost dawn when Mizuiri quietly opened the door to the twins' room. They had fallen asleep together on the floor, still fully clothed. Silently, she bent down and scooped them up with one arm each – Sakon with her left arm, Ukon with her right. They were getting heavy.

Mizuiri set them both down on their bed, and then softly shook their shoulders. Ukon woke up first and looked at his mother without a word until Sakon was awake too.

"Mommy?" Sakon whispered, sitting up with his brother. "What happened?"

"Are you mad?" Ukon asked.

Mizuiri shook her head. "Of course not. Never." Her voice was shaking. She lifted a hand to wipe away a tear; a ninja must never show emotions.

"What's wrong?" Ukon asked.

Mizuiri swallowed hard, and tried not to let her voice tremble again. Kunoichi or not, she was above all else a mother. She had to be strong for her children.

"I have to leave," Mizuiri said. "Both for your sake and for mine. I'm sorry." She bent down and kissed each of her sons. "I won't be coming back."

"Why?" Sakon asked. This was certainly alarming. "Where you going?"

"I don't know," Mizuiri said. She had no plan, but she knew she had to leave.

Futago and Akusei had been quite frank in their threats. Because of what Mizuiri had done, Ukon hadn't atrophied the way they wanted him to. The Shinken clan wanted to get a doctor to complete the process, since they didn't trust that Mizuiri wouldn't keep trying to save Ukon.

The only way to make sure they didn't touch Ukon was to leave. Then they could let him atrophy the way they wanted – Mizuiri shuddered at the thought – and wouldn't hurt him. They had almost said as much themselves.

She hugged the twins and sat beside them. "Your father doesn't know I'm leaving yet, so we have to keep quiet," she said. "Sakon, Ukon – listen to me very carefully, all right?"

They nodded.

"Always take care of each other," she said. "There is nothing in this world more important than your family, and you two are closer than most family will ever be. You both have to keep each other safe and help each other get strong. Do you understand?"

They nodded again.

She looked at Ukon. Dark smears beneath his eyes made his face look gaunt and hollow, as if he hadn't eaten in weeks. He was thinner than Sakon, paler than Sakon, feebler than Sakon by far. Why hadn't she done more to stop it?

She stroked his face, running her fingers through the hair hanging down over his left eye. "Ukon, you were born first," she said. She had originally decided never to tell the twins, in case Ukon use that against Sakon. But she didn't see how that could be possible now. "Remember that when your father tries to tell you that you're less important than Sakon. No matter what he says or does, you are the eldest."

Ukon reached up to grab his mother's hand. His felt cool and dry, like an old man's skin. "I'll remember," he whispered.

Mizuiri nodded, and spoke to his brother. "Sakon, you…" She had to clear her throat. "You have to protect Ukon. He's going to need your help to stay strong. As long as you stay in the Shinken clan, you will be his only hope. Whatever you do, don't abandon him."

"Okay, Mommy," Sakon said.

That was it. Mizuiri had to leave before sunrise, or else Futago would wake up. He wouldn't be happy to find her running away.

Mizuiri shuddered. That man, Futago. Maybe she had loved him five years ago. Maybe two years ago. Maybe she still loved him. Even so, he disgusted her. What decent human treated his family the way Futago – the way the entire Shinken clan – treated the "inferior" twins? He treated his own brother like a tool.

He treated one of his own sons like nothing.

She couldn't stand him anymore. She had stayed for Sakon and Ukon's sake, but now they were in more danger with her than without her. As much as she hated to admit it, they would be safer if their mother was gone.

Mizuiri stood and took each twin on a shoulder. There was one more thing she had to say.

"Ukon. Sakon. If you forget everything else, remember this. You are both equally beautiful. You are equally intelligent, equally important, and equally strong on the inside. And, no matter what anyone else tells you, you are and always will be equally precious."

The twins started crying. Mizuiri realized, with some surprise, that it was probably because she had started crying as she spoke. She got on her knees and pulled them both into a hug. The twins hugged her back; Ukon buried his face into her right shoulder and Sakon sobbed openly into her left.

"I love you both so much," she whispered, finally letting go of the twins and standing. She smiled at them through her tears. "Make me proud. Be the strongest two ninja the Shinken clan has ever seen."

With that, Mizuiri stood and left.

Sakon and Ukon never saw her alive again.

x

Futago was furious the next morning.

He thoroughly interrogated Sakon as to where in the name of the Spirit Meadows had Mizuiri run off to, and even dragged Ukon out to question him. When both twins were reduced to gasping sobs and Futago was convinced that they didn't know anything useful, he ordered Futan to inform the elders that Mizuiri had run away, and then to go to the Kusagakure ANBU to report that she was to be hunted as a missing-nin.

Futan was never so happy to leave Futago in his life.

He was worried about leaving his nephews in Futago's hands when he was in this mood, but, he reasoned, it wasn't like he could do anything to defend them. He wasn't strong enough, and Futago wouldn't listen anyway. So Futan headed off to do his duty.

He walked slowly enough on regular days, and today in particular he was taking his sweet time. If he gave Mizuiri a chance to get farther from Kusagakure, then he had helped as much as he could. When he finally arrived at the Elders' Court (who governed the Shinken clan), he went inside, sat down on a bench by the door, and waited for the woman at the front desk to notice him.

Above and behind the desk was a giant painting of the Shinken clan symbol, two yellow lotus flowers growing off of the same stem, representing how Shinken twins grow and live as if they are one.

That, Futan knew, was not how reality was. Of course, it was very rare that an inferior bothered to think of such things, much less was capable of such thoughts.

The woman behind the desk finally glanced up from a document she'd been looking over and noticed Futan. "Do you have a letter?" she asked. Most inferiors couldn't communicate, so they carried notes from their dominants when sent on errands.

"I can speak," Futan rasped. He stood and shuffled to the front desk. The woman's inferior turned slightly to glance at Futan, to see if he really was an inferior that wasn't mute, then turned away and shut her eyes again.

"Then speak," the woman commanded.

"Mizuiri-san ran away from Futago-san's home," Futan said. "He asked me to inform the elders."

The woman gave Futan a curious glance and flipped open a notebook to write the message. "I'll tell them," she said, and then added, "Futago-san must be a great teacher, for you to speak so fluently."

Futan bent his head slightly, not stable enough to fully bow without falling. "Thank you, secretary-san. I will tell him you said so."

Futago had taught Futan nothing.

x

Futan heard some interesting news on the way to the ANBU headquarters. The common Kusagakure residents were discussing it; someone had broken into the home of a Shinken elder. Nothing was damaged, no one was hurt, and apparently the only thing that had been taken was a single scroll. How odd. What could it be about?

News within Shinken territory was much more informative. The scroll had information the true, secret location of Kusagakure's ultimate weapon. Whoever had stolen the scroll knew the weapon wasn't in its temple, and was looking for it. Futan was guiltily pleased to hear this news. Mizuiri wouldn't be leaving empty-handed, apparently.

Futan had to stop to rest on a bench before going over the hill in the middle of Kusagakure. Walking from Futago's home to the Elders' Court to here had used up nearly all of his limited energy. In fact, he wasn't sure he could get over the hill unaided. He was looking at it with eyes squinted in the bright sunlight and considering his odds of getting across when a shadow fell over him. From the corner of his eye he caught sight of a loose gray cloak.

"Do you need some help, Lotus-san?"

It was a member of the Kamibana clan, apparently. They called members of the Shinken clan "Lotus," referring to their clan symbol. For the most part they treated inferiors the same as dominants – a rarity in Kusagakure.

"Please, if you don't mind," Futan said, looking up. This Kamibana, like the rest in her clan, was two-toned; her face and the front of her neck were white, but everything behind it was black. When she offered a hand to help Futan to his feet, the palm was black and the other side was white. Futan couldn't see what plant she had growing on her; she was probably using her cloak and long-sleeved shirt to hide it. She held a steadying hand around his waist while he put one arm around her shoulder.

"Where are you headed to?" the Kamibana asked.

"ANBU headquarters," Futan said, "to report a missing-nin."

"That's quite a distance," the Kamibana commented, meaning, of course, that it was quite a distance for a Shinken inferior. As she started to walk with him up the hill, she said, in a much deeper, rougher voice, "Those Shinken cretins shouldn't cripple their twins if they expect them to walk so far."

Futan smiled, but didn't comment. The Kamibana clan was well known for their less-than-courteous dual personalities.

They were passing the temple when the Kamibana suddenly stopped to look at it. Wondering why, Futan turned his head to see. He almost laughed.

A deep gash ran across the stone surface of the temple, obviously the work of a blade, and was made in a single slice as smooth as if the blade had been cutting through loose soil. It was a cut that only could have been made with the weapon that this temple was pretending to be guarding.

"How interesting," the Kamibana said, her yellow eyes bright. "The weapon that even Zetsu-senpai, the pride of our clan, could not find…" She glanced at Futan. "Not that we are proud of him anymore."

"I understand, Kamibana-san," Futan said, giving her a meaningful glance. "I have never been more… ashamed… to call myself brother-in-law of the kunoichi who probably did this."

The Kamibana grinned slightly. "The missing-nin you need to report?"

Futan nodded. His throat was sore from talking so much. That had been a long sentence.

"You have my… sympathy," the Kamibana said, her grin spreading.

Before they moved on, the Kamibana stepped up to the temple and let go of Futan long enough to push up the sleeve on her left arm. It was completely covered with ivy, with tiny thorns and leaves. So, that was the plant she'd grown, Futan thought. He wondered how much of her it covered.

She placed her hand against the gash on the stone. The plants on her arm started moving, and soon had filled in and covered the gash. It looked like ivy had been growing on the temple for years. Futan didn't bother to ask what she was doing.

By the end, there appeared to be no damage to the stone at all. It was completely hidden by ivy. No one would ever know that anything had happened. The Kamibana covered her arm again and continued to help Futan walk.

In her rougher voice, she sneered, "Suckers."

x

"What took you so long?" Futago demanded when Futan got home.

"Can't walk," Futan managed to croak, before stumbling forward and collapsing into Futago's body. Even though the Kamibana had helped him almost all the way back to the house, he was completely drained. He could barely move, barely speak, and just wanted to fall asleep until Futago needed him again.

"You were gone almost three hours," Futago said. "Did you give the message to the elders?"

Three hours? No wonder Futan was so exhausted. He took a shuddering breath, and finally managed to croak, "Yes."

"And you told everything to ANBU?"

"Yes." No. He hadn't mentioned anything about the missing scroll, or the sword. If the Shinken elders wanted to check the hiding place themselves, so be it. Futan himself would not betray Mizuiri.

"Good." That was all Futago said. After that he ignored Futan and continued about his own business.

Futan didn't care. He let his head dip down, shut his eyes, and gratefully fell into an exhausted sleep.

x

A/N: Wow, I don't think there are any new names to define this chapter. Huh. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter, and reviews would be much appreciated. Thank you!


	5. Just Desserts

And finally, a chapter completely dedicated to Sakon and Ukon and what they're doing. It is also the longest chapter so far. Yay! Thank you for all your reviews, and special thank to the two c2s that have added this fic: Mai Faivoiraites and Noir's Chaos Mix.

Disclaimer: All previous disclaimers still apply. I own Onshi and Gohei-Mochi. Kishimoto owns everything else, and has not returned my calls about purchasing the filler characters yet. Darn.

x

Thicker Than Water

Just Desserts

x

On his first day of school, Sakon was exhausted. Neither he nor Ukon had gotten any rest the past three weeks. They'd kept their daddy up at night, too, the first week, calling for him several times an hour until they fell into fitful sleep. The second week, he stopped coming, letting them deal with their problems themselves. This did nothing to help their insomnia. At least they still had each other.

That morning, Futago could hardly drag Sakon out of bed and get him ready for school. Ukon was quite a bit easier, since he was already inside his brother and therefore could keep sleeping. Sometimes – not very often, but sometimes – Sakon wished he was the inferior. After thirty minutes of struggle, though, when Futago started shouting at the top of his lungs that if Sakon didn't hurry up he would give him and his brother to Kamibana Zetsu (the bogeyman of Kusagakure), Sakon got the hint and quickly left the house.

He was supposed to walk himself to school, but the first few days Futago had arranged for him to walk with his cousin, a girl (and her twin) who was two years older. If she said anything to Sakon on the way to school, he didn't notice. He probably would have fallen asleep while walking if Ukon hadn't finally woken up and kept whispering to Sakon to keep him awake.

They wished their mommy was there.

The cousin helped Sakon and Ukon find their classroom, before heading down the hall to her own room. They walked into the room quietly and stood by themselves. Most of the other students were standing by themselves as well, though a few had gotten together and were noisily talking. A bell alarmed the kids – the start of the school day, but the first years didn't know that. Since no one had shown up to tell them what to do yet, they kept standing around.

"Is there s'posed to be a teacher?" Sakon said, as if he was just musing to himself. That's what Mizuiri had told him, that they would be listening to a teacher, who she said was kind of like a baby-sitter, but since Sakon and Ukon had never had a baby-sitter they didn't know what to make of that description.

Keeping his head low, Ukon whispered, "I dunno. Maybe we should sit?"

Sakon took the advice silently. He walked about halfway back along the rows of desks and slid into the middle of a row in the middle of the room. At the front of the class, the other kids were still standing around and talking. Several had started playing tag. Two students pulled out their practice kunai and scared a few kids that, apparently, weren't in the ninja program.

Sakon watched the whole scene silently, Ukon listened. They thought the other kids were pretty reckless. To a child, the most vulnerable parts of the body are the face and the stomach, which meant the other students didn't have to watch their back in the same way Sakon did, and they weren't as defenseless as Ukon was. So each sat and watched, alone except for his brother.

It wasn't long, though, before another student came up to them. She hadn't joined in the impromptu tag game, and when she saw Sakon sitting by himself, she walked up and claimed a seat beside him. "I didn't know we could sit," she said.

Sakon shrugged. A girl! What were they supposed to do with a girl? Sakon decided to stay silent. Ukon turned his head just slightly enough to get a look at the girl out of the corner of his eye, and looked away again.

The girl chose silence as well. For a couple of minutes, she entertained herself by slouching in her seat and attempting to kick the back of the chair in front of her. When she'd managed to brush it with the toe of her shoe, she turned again to Sakon. "What's your name?"

"Shinken Sakon," he said. "What's yours?"

"Komugi Natsugusa," the girl said. She tilted her head sideways, looking over Sakon's shoulder. "Who's he?"

It was probably the first time someone had asked about Ukon. Sakon was about to answer, but his brother lifted his head, looked at Natsugusa, and said, "I'm Ukon."

"He's my twin," Sakon said.

Natsugusa nodded. "You're one of those guys with two heads," she said matter-of-factly. "Can I ask you a question?"

Sakon shrugged. "Okay."

"If one of you burps and you cover your mouth, does it come out the other head?" she asked.

"Nope. It all comes out Sakon," Ukon said, and grinned shyly when Natsugusa giggled. It was the first time he could remember that he'd answered a question directed at his brother and not been called down for it.

"I didn't know both heads could talk," Natsugusa said. "I thought the second one didn't do anything."

"Did you think they just sit there?" Sakon said.

Natsugusa shook her head. "I thought they were all dead."

That shut up the twins. It was a long moment before they could answer. Ukon finally said, "I'm not dead."

"Okay," Natsugusa said. Satisfied, she turned to look at the front of the classroom again.

They sat together for several minutes, watching the kids at the front of the room playing tag. One girl had a trick of running a few steps up the wall and grabbing the edges of the wooden paneling along the walls to pull herself out of the reach of the taggers. Another boy had decided to avoid the entire game by sitting in the corner with his knees pulled up to his chest; he had the darkest skin Sakon and Ukon had ever seen.

Finally, Natsugusa pulled out a piece of paper and a box of crayons. "Wanna color?"

"Sure." Sakon scooted his chair sideways to sit nearer to Natsugusa and grabbed an orange crayon.

The teacher didn't show up for another five minutes. In that time, Natsugusa and Sakon drew themselves and Ukon, the taggers at the front switched games and split into two armies to throw chalkboard erasers at each other, a long panel of wood was pulled down by the girl who kept running up the wall, Natsugusa and Sakon had drawn a house behind their portraits, and a small fire started on the teacher's desk.

The door suddenly swung wide open. "Freeze!"

The classroom froze. Natsugusa's crayon stopped in the middle of coloring yellow grass that was almost as tall as the house.

A man holding a mug of coffee walked calmly into the classroom, surveyed the children, proceeded to his desk, and doused the fire on his magazine with a bit of his coffee. "Good morning," he said cheerfully. "Welcome to Kusa Primary School. Some of you – in fact, most of you in this class – will be participating in the Ninja Academy program." He set down his coffee mug and pulled a few tissues from a box covered with pink butterflies to mop up the coffee on his magazine. Then he turned around, looked at the children again, and pointed at Natsugusa, Sakon, and Ukon. "Why aren't all of you at your desks like these two?" he asked.

Quickly, the children grabbed up their bags and ran to claim various seats. The last one to sit down was the boy with dark skin who had been sitting in the corner. Sakon and Ukon noticed as he passed to get a chair in the back that he wasn't black all over; his head and arms were dark, but his hands and legs were pure white. They wondered if the boy had painted himself or something.

"Good," the teacher said. He pushed aside the wet magazine and tissues, picked up his coffee again to take a sip, and sat on his desk. "My name is Onshi. You kids will call me Onshi-sensei. Got it?"

"Yes!" the classroom chorused back.

"Excellent." Onshi beamed at them. "Now then, there are twenty-nine students in this classroom. Twenty-one of you are in the ninja program. You've been put together because you were recognized while applying as students with the greatest potential for success in the program."

The students stared back at their teacher. That certainly sounded nice, they thought, if only they had any idea what it meant.

"Most of the time you'll be learning your lessons together," Onshi said. "However, you'll be split into two different classes for physical education, ninja and regular. Also, while regular students get free time before lunch, ninja students have additional training."

He paused to take another gulp of his coffee. "Today, we're spending all day together. We'll be learning the classroom rules. Are there any questions before we start?"

A boy at the front of the room raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"Why does your hair look like grass?" he asked.

Several of the students giggled. Onshi's hair was vivid green with streaks of brown, and stuck straight up. It did indeed look like blades of grass.

"That's a very good question! There are two reasons," Onshi said brightly. "First, I was born with hair like this." This caused several more giggles, including from Sakon. "Second, as a ninja, the more ways you can blend into the environment, the better. Living in Kusagakure, being able to hide in the grass could make the difference between life and brutal torture followed by a slow death."

Six students resolved on the spot to go home and dye their hair green.

"Any more questions?"

"How old are you?" Natsugusa asked.

"Seventeen," the teacher said. "I've been a teaching assistant for two years, since becoming a chuunin. This is my first year as a teacher."

"My brother's fourteen and he's gonna be a chuunin this year!" Natsugusa announced. Several other students looked at her with new admiration.

"That's very good." Onshi laughed. "Anyone else have a question?"

Apparently, nobody did.

"Fantastic!" Onshi beamed at his new students. "Then let's get started." He turned around, switched his giant mug of coffee to his left hand, and started writing on the chalkboard. "These are the rules at Kusa Primary School," he said. He wrote several columns of text, turned, and read them out loud for the benefit of the students who couldn't read yet – which were all of them.

"Rule number one: Always respect the teacher," he said, and continued to read through the list. "Rule number two: Always listen to your senpai and always assist your kohai..."

There were ten rules in all. The students listened passively until Onshi finished, looked up, and said, "Can anyone remember what the first rule was?"

Panic crossed several students' faces. They were supposed to remember these things? They hadn't signed up for that! They glanced at each other, wondering what to do now.

Natsugusa simply looked amused. Sakon turned towards her and whispered the way he had practiced, so it looked like his lips weren't moving: "Do you know what it is?"

She turned to face Sakon, surprised. "Did you whisper?"

He nodded, almost imperceptibly.

"I didn't see your lips move," she said, clearly impressed. She shook her head. "I don't know it. No one does. I don't think we're supposed to remember."

"I remember," Ukon whispered. There was pride in his raspy voice.

"What is it?" Sakon asked, already prepared to raise his hand. Natsugusa cut in and said, "Tell the teacher!"

Ukon obeyed Natsugusa. He stepped out of Sakon and stood at attention beside him, and said as loudly as his weak voice allowed, "I know the answer, Onshi-sensei."

Startled, all the students turned towards voice. With even more confusion, they looked back and forth between Sakon and Ukon. The only twins they had ever seen were combined Shinken siblings, and for all they knew a "twin" was just a second head.

Onshi's bright expression dimmed, and he sighed. "It seems you've got a head start training your twin... Sakon-kun," he said, glancing down at his role sheet to find the name of the Shinken. "But you have to answer the question yourself."

Sakon hadn't trained Ukon to do anything. They glanced at each other, puzzled.

"Why can't Ukon-kun answer?" Natsugusa demanded.

"Sakon-kun's twin isn't a student," Onshi said.

Natsugusa, Sakon, and Ukon stared at the teacher, stunned at this turn of events. Sakon and Ukon were at least slightly prepared; Mizuiri had told them that Sakon would be the real student, but they didn't know that meant Ukon couldn't answer questions.

"But why—" Sakon started.

Ukon cut him off with a whisper. "No."

Sakon slouched in his seat angrily, and only shifted up a bit when Ukon slipped back into his body so his brother's throat wouldn't be crushed against the chair's back.

"I'm sorry," Onshi said. He sounded like he meant it. "Do you know the answer, Sakon-kun?"

"'Always respect the teacher,'" Ukon whispered to Sakon.

Respect the teacher. Sakon scowled and muttered, "I weren't listening."

"Wasn't listening," Onshi corrected. As soon as the teacher told the class the answer and asked if anyone knew the second rule, Sakon put his head down on his desk, clamped both hands over his ears, and proceeded to continue weren't listening until lunch.

x

Children in Kusagakure were expected to be able to fend for themselves. As such, they weren't kept in their classrooms for lunch. They brought 1000 ryou from home and were given an hour to go out into the village and find their own food.

Ninja students and regular students hadn't been split apart during free time on the first day of school, so Natsugusa and Sakon – and Ukon – could have played with the other students, but chose not to. Instead, they had pulled out another piece of paper and colored together. This time, they drew a man and scribbled green grass hair on his head, and for no reason at all added their own personal interpretation of Kamibana Zetsu beside him: an enormous figure with a black robe and green skin and fangs and flowers growing out of his back.

At lunch, they walked together, looking for a restaurant that they all recognized and could eat at together.

"I don't get it," Natsugusa said. "Why is Ukon at school if he isn't a student?"

"I guess he gotta go with me," Sakon said. "Daddy says we gotta stay together."

That made sense. "Mom always tells me and Jiro to stay together," Natsugusa said. Even so, Jiro had never taken Natsugusa to school with him – until today, but that was because she was a student now.

"Is Jiro your twin?" Ukon asked.

"No, he's my brother," Natsugusa said. Jiro was her younger-older brother, eight years old. Her older-older brother, Yasoumaru, was on a genin team and didn't have time to take care of his sister.

"It's different for us," Ukon said. "I get in trouble if I'm not good."

"Me too," Natsugusa said, shrugging.

Sakon and Ukon both shook their heads, signifying that Natsugusa didn't quite understand. She wondered if they ever hit each other's ears, shaking their heads like that. "You're not a Shinken," Sakon said.

Natsugusa couldn't argue with that point. Instead, she looked around and spotted a restaurant she recognized. "That's Gohei-Mochi," she said. "Sometimes we eat there with Mom. Wanna go there?"

Sakon stopped walking, surveying the restaurant.

"It's got really good rice cakes," Natsugusa said. "Does your mom ever take you here?"

They seemed to speak between each other where Natsugusa couldn't hear, deciding who should answer the question. "Mommy disappeared," Sakon said.

"Oh." Natsugusa looked away from the twins. "Sorry."

She understood what that was like. A little over a year ago, the Akatsuki had killed three ANBU from Kusagakure that were spying on them. Her father was one of the three. His was the only body that wasn't recovered; it had been devoured by a Kyodaija, a summoned giant snake.

Natsugusa reached up to touch her necklace of round, red beads. It had been her fourth birthday gift and last present from her father. She had recently turned six, but the necklace was still her favorite gift.

"Come on," she said softly. "I'll tell you which rice cakes are the best. We can get some with ice cream."

Sakon nodded and followed Natsugusa into Gohei-Mochi.

They ended up getting two rice cakes filled with ice cream. Over time, most students in the ninja program figured out on their own that they had to eat decent food if they wanted to survive the day's grueling training, but for the time being, the first year students only cared that they could eat whatever they wanted without any parents to protest.

Natsugusa had strawberry ice cream in her rice cake. Ukon had chocolate ice cream in his, given to him by Sakon when nobody was looking to make up for not being a real student. Sakon had a pickle, and was more than satisfied that he'd made a good choice.

x

Sakon and Ukon's cousin (and her twin) walked them home after school, and let them go up to their house on their own. Their father had told Sakon that from now on, he'd be spending afternoons at home alone while he was out on a mission, and Sakon was expected to take care of himself even if Futago didn't get home for a long time, or even if he didn't come home that night. The only time he mentioned Ukon at all in his list of instructions was to say that if Sakon should sleep in on a school day, it was Ukon's responsibility to wake him up. It never seemed to dawn on the dominants that their inferiors slept more than they did.

Sakon searched his pockets futilely for the house key several times, until Ukon snaked out a hand, reached into his brother's oversized kunai pouch, and pulled out the key from among the practice kunai. Sakon took the key from Ukon without a single word and put it into the door. He stopped, without turning the key.

They both realized that Sakon was treating Ukon exactly the same way that Daddy treated Uncle Futan.

In a rush, Sakon said, "Thanks for finding the key, Ukon."

"You're welcome," Ukon responded, almost before his brother finished speaking.

Sakon twisted the key, rushed through the open door, and slammed it behind them, leaving the key outside. It was almost as if he was hoping to keep whatever had come over him locked outside, where it belonged.

They really, really wished their mommy was there.

Ukon split off from Sakon, and without even having to speak to each other they ran through the house, turning on every light. Ukon didn't slide back into his brother until Futago (and Futan) got home, nearly at nine, but once the lights were on they never drifted more than four feet away from each other.

Something about the house was more terrifying when they were alone, when there was no one to watch them and keep them safe from the world – or to keep them safe from the influence of the Shinken clan.

The next day, they told their cousin (with her twin) that they could walk home by themselves. Instead, they followed their new friend, Natsugusa, to her house, and stayed there with her and her brother Jiro until eight o' clock. They got home just before Futago. It seemed like a fine arrangement to them. After all, at five years old, they had been hiding things from their father since before they could remember.

x

A/N: Onshi means "one's honored teacher." Gohei-Mochi is apparently a type of rice ball, but I couldn't tell you any more than that. (Look at me, mutilating Japanese language like nobody's business.) Ryou is the currency in the world of Naruto, and is approximately the same value as a yen, but since it's in a fictional setting who knows for sure. The current exchange rate is approximately 121 yen for 1 US dollar, but I'm lazy and say 1 ryou is 1 US cent, so 1000 ryou is 1000 cents, 10 dollars. (Look at me, mutilating Japanese currency like nobody's business.) Thank you for reading, and reviews would be greatly appreciated!


	6. Two Minus One Equals

It took me forever to get this chapter started, and then once I did, it just took off. Funny how that happens. Anyway, thank you all for the reviews so far. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: All previous disclaimers still apply. The only new character is Kamibana Meian, who was mentioned last chapter if you look closely. Yes, all these characters really are important.

x

Thicker Than Water

Two Minus One Equals

x

"Jiro-kun, how do I do this one?" Sakon asked. He swung his legs impatiently beneath the kitchen table, waiting for Jiro to look at his paper.

Jiro, leaning over Natsugusa's chair to look at her paper, sighed. "Can't you do one problem on your own?"

"It's easier when you explain it," Sakon said.

"Hey, I'm only helping Natsugusa 'cause she's my sister. Can't you get your brother to help you?" Jiro asked.

There was an awkward silence. Ukon, lying in a chair in the living room and looking at a comic book (they couldn't read the words yet), turned around to look at his brother through the doorway. "He doesn't learn it," Sakon said quietly. "He can't see the board."

"He should turn around," Jiro grumbled. He wasn't particularly sympathetic towards Ukon's plight, which, admittedly, was a bit of blessing, after years of everyone around them making a big deal about it.

Sakon and Ukon were at the Komugi household, as usual spending the evening with Natsugusa's family. There were usually only two people home: Natsugusa and her older brother Jiro, three grades higher. Her eldest brother, Yasoumaru, was a genin and was usually away from home on missions. Right now, though, he was attending the Chuunin exams in Konohagakure.

Their mother was in ANBU, and never seemed to be home at all. It showed in the house; dirty dishes were always piled next to the sink, although Jiro made sure they were neat piles and Yasoumaru cleaned some when he had the time. Nothing had been dusted, polished, mopped, washed, or otherwise cleaned for ages, and while it wasn't dirty per se, it had the feeling of clutter. It was much better than being at home. Sakon and Ukon had never noticed how soulless their home felt, how empty, until they'd started coming to Natsugusa's house.

Jiro moved around the kitchen table to look at Sakon's paper. "Which problem are you on?"

"This one," Sakon said, pointing. 5 plus 6 equals...

"That's an easy one," Jiro said crossly. They were all easy to him.

"But the answer's over ten," Sakon said.

"Then go up to ten, and whatever's left over goes in the ones place," Jiro explained, and moved back to Natsugusa to help her on her math.

"Oh." Sakon stared at his paper. That hadn't helped at all. He stared at the problem, counted it out on his fingers, got up to ten and still had some left over, so wrote 20 and moved on.

Ukon got up and walked, only wobbling a little bit, into the kitchen. "I finished the book," he said, putting it on the table. He stood on his toes long enough to grab a cookie off the plate in the middle before he sank back on his heels. Silently, he scooted next to his brother to look at his worksheet over his shoulder. Sakon unconsciously reached out with his left hand to hold Ukon's arm, steadying him.

They were quiet for a few minutes, except for the scratching of pencil on paper and Ukon's chewing. Sakon looked up and said, "Jiro-kun, what's the answer to this one?"

The problem said 3 plus 9. Ukon's lips moved silently, and he lifted one hand. On the surface of the table, he mimed counting out the numbers. "_One-two-three-four-five-six-seven-eight-nine-one..._" he started a new row, "_...Two-three._" Ten numbers, and two extra underneath. In his raspy voice, he said, "Twelve."

Natsugusa and Sakon stared at him. Oblivious, Jiro said, "I told you to ask your brother."

Sakon quickly wrote down the answer, and said, "How did you do that?"

Ukon shrugged. "I just counted." While the other students in the class counted the numbers on their fingers, Ukon had never had that privilege; his hands were always inside Sakon. He counted everything inside his head, pantomiming the numbers when he could but otherwise not needing anything physical to look at for addition or subtraction.

"Can you answer the others?" Sakon asked.

"I guess," Ukon said.

Sakon handed him his pencil. He transferred it to his left hand, and studied the paper. 7 plus 6. Ukon thought a moment, and then shakily wrote a 14.

It seemed right to Sakon. Grinning, he slid out of his seat. "Here."

"Thanks," Ukon said and took Sakon's chair. As Sakon watched, Ukon proudly answered the rest of the questions. The numbers were crooked, faint, and – most of the time – correct.

For once, Sakon was watching in the background while Ukon did the work. It was a complete role-switch. The dominant was subordinate, the inferior was superior. They had never had this much fun with homework.

Sakon finished his homework long before Natsugusa, so he went outside to practice with his kunai. There was a wooden target nailed to a tree in the back, about two feet across. Jiro was expected to hit the circle in the center; as first years, Sakon and Natsugusa could hit the target anywhere, as long as they got their kunai to stick in the wood.

It was early December, and deep cold had already covered the Land of Grass. Sakon took two blankets from a closet in the Komugi household and wrapped Ukon in them, and put on his own coat and hat before they went outside. Puffing out clouds of cold air, Sakon stood with both feet on a line fifteen feet from the target, and threw kunai after kunai until he'd used them all up, ran up to collect them, and went back to the line. Ukon watched, shivering under his blankets. He wasn't strong enough to throw a kunai fifteen feet.

After a while, Natsugusa and Jiro came out. They took turns, throwing practice kunai and telling jokes (Jiro rolled his eyes at all of them), until Sakon and Ukon headed home.

Ukon slid into Sakon at the door out, and as they walked, Sakon said, "How many did I hit?"

"Thirty-seven," Ukon said. His voice was even rougher than usual from the cold.

"Cool," Sakon said cheerfully. They never counted how many he'd done wrong. The ones he missed were never important.

x

The next morning, Sakon was woken by Ukon's sniffles. He opened his eyes groggily, and fumbled around on their bedside table until he found their clock, and pushed the button on top to make the screen light up. The short hand was near the six; it was actually 5:53, but he couldn't tell that. They usually didn't get up until the short hand was between the seven and eight. Sakon groaned quietly, then rolled over to face Ukon.

His brother was turned away from him, so he shook his shoulder. "Ukon, what is it?" he said. "Are you crying?"

"No," Ukon croaked. He sounded horrible. "I got a cold."

"Oh." He needed tissues, then. Sakon thought of the tissue box in the kitchen. He got up on his knees, and said, "C'mon, get in me."

Ukon sniffed thickly, and nodded, then slid into his brother's back. Sakon jumped off his bed, quietly opened the door, and crept into the kitchen.

He stood on his toes to pick up the box of tissues, and then held it over his shoulder. "Here," he whispered.

"Thanks," Ukon said, sliding both hands out of Sakon's shoulders. The sleeves on Sakon's nightshirt strained to hold twice as many arms as usual, but luckily it was a baggy shirt. Ukon held the box in one hand and started pulling out tissues to blow his nose. He used six before he finally whispered a second thanks and put the box back in Sakon's hand.

"No problem." Sakon took the box back on the counter and stood in front of the wastebasket so Ukon could throw his used tissues away.

He'd gotten halfway back to his room when Ukon said urgently, "Sakon, I think I needanothertissue_fast_."

"Okay!" Sakon about-faced and sprinted back into the kitchen. He'd grabbed up the tissue box and was about to pass it over his shoulder when Ukon sneezed. Something slimy soaked into the back of his shirt.

Ukon sniffed. "Sorry."

Sakon resisted the urge to touch the back of his shirt. He handed the tissue box to Ukon. "I know."

x

When Futago flipped on the light switch in the kitchen at seven that morning, he was surprised to see his son already in there. "Sakon? Why are you up so early?" he said.

"I can't go to school today," Sakon said seriously. He was standing in one place, fidgeting slightly, as if he were waiting for something.

"Why not?" Futago said, surprised.

"Ukon's sick," he said. Sakon had gotten sick a month or so ago, and both he and Ukon had stayed home from school that day. Since Ukon was sick now, obviously neither of them could go to school.

Futago frowned. He walked around Sakon to look at his back. Ukon was holding a nearly empty tissue box. His eyes were bloodshot, his skin was pale. He looked absolutely miserable. To most people, he would look like a sick little kid; to a Shinken, he just looked like a normal inferior. "That's no reason why you can't go to school," Futago said, studying Ukon. "He's not that ill, for an inferior. If you start staying at home every time he catches something, you'll miss half the school year. Just bring some tissues for him in your back pocket, where he can reach them if he needs to."

He turned away from Sakon and his sick twin, and said, "Breakfast." Obediently, Futan slid out of Futago's back and carefully pulled out the plastic bowl and cereal box for Sakon's meal.

Sakon stared at his father. "But Ukon's sick!" he said. "He can't go to school!"

"Inferiors are always sick," Futago said. "It's part of their nature. You'll just have to get used to that now."

Sakon was about to protest, but Futan loudly put his bowl of cereal down on the table. "Eat your breakfast, Sakon-kun," he said softly, so Futago wouldn't be able to hear him.

His voice, Sakon and Ukon could hear, was even raspier than normal, and was thick with phlegm. Sakon looked at his face with concern, but Futan only offered him a feeble smile. He coughed, and then slid back into Futago.

Silently, Sakon sat down and started eating.

x

On the way to school, just far away from the house that Futago wouldn't be able to see, Sakon stopped and told Ukon to come out.

The sky was the dull gray of an unpolished blade, and white flakes were just barely starting to drift down from above. Ukon shivered in his sandals and the flimsy material of his tank top and shorts while Sakon took off his own hat and scarf.

Sakon was wearing a heavy coat and pants, and since Ukon was usually inside of him he didn't need heavy winter clothes. They each had their own hat and scarf, but since Ukon was sick, Sakon gave his to his brother.

Once Ukon's head and neck were thoroughly covered, so only his eyes and a few wisps of blue-gray hair could be seen, he slid back into Sakon and they continued to school.

Sakon didn't care what his father had said; Ukon was too sick to go to school, and he would prove it. He jogged the rest of the way to school, his breath coming out in puffs in the frigid air, so he got there a few minutes early. It was enough time to go by the nurse's office, drop of Ukon and give him his winter coat to keep him work, and hurry to class. He turned in his homework to Onshi, hurried to his seat beside Natsugusa, and managed to sit before the bell rang. Many of the students stared at his back as he went past, but he didn't notice.

Onshi called roll, glancing up as each student said "Here" and moving on, only stopping after calling Shinken Sakon. "Where's your twin?" he asked.

"Sick," Sakon said. He tugged at the collar of his shirt to keep it from sliding off his shoulder; without Ukon in the back, the wide collar fell sideways.

Onshi nodded. "I'm sorry. I hope you'll get him back soon," he said, smiled at Sakon, and moved on. He had died his hair brown during fall, saying that green hair was no camouflage at all when the grass was dead and disappointing the three students who had dyed their hair green. "Kamibana Meian?"

"Um..."

"Does 'um' mean 'here,' Meian-kun?"

"Uh..."

While Onshi was distracted with Meian (who did this pretty much every morning), Natsugusa turned to Sakon and whispered, "What happened to Ukon-kun?"

"He got a cold," Sakon whispered back. "Daddy made him come to school, so he's with the nurse."

Natsugusa nodded. "We should buy something for him at lunch," she said. "What does he like?"

Sakon realized he didn't really know. He shrugged.

"I think he said he likes taiyaki, right?" Natsugusa said.

"Oh, yeah." They'd gone to get taiyaki once with their mother. Sakon felt a small pang at the thought; their mother had been gone for almost eight months. "He had it with chocolate filling."

"We can get that," Natsugusa said.

"Natsugusa-chan? Please don't talk during roll call, okay?" Onshi said.

"Yes, sensei," Natsugusa said.

"Thank you." Onshi put down the roll sheet, and said, "Now, just flipping through your homework, it looks like a lot of you didn't finish. How many here aren't sure they can add above ten?"

Most of the class raised their hands. Onshi stared out at the classroom, sighed, and then smiled brightly. "Right! So, let's review." He turned to the board, picked up a piece of chalk, and started explaining.

x

Class went smoothly for most of the afternoon. Sakon kept getting distracted, worried about Ukon, until the end of class. He and Natsugusa grabbed some fruit for their lunch, imported from the southern farms in the Land of Fire that hadn't frozen yet, and spent the rest of their lunch period searching the village for a restaurant that sold taiyaki. They never found one.

"Maybe we can find one after school," Natsugusa said as they headed back to class. "Do you remember where you usually get taiyaki with Ukon-kun?"

"No," Sakon said. Honestly, he could only remember getting taiyaki once, though he was sure he'd had it some time before then.

"Maybe we can get some after school," Natsugusa said. "Ukon-kun can wait at my house while we go look."

"Okay," Sakon said.

Onshi was waiting outside the classroom when they came up. He smiled at them as they went in, but only let Natsugusa by. "Sakon-kun, can I speak to you a moment before class?"

"Yes, sensei," Sakon said, stopping. He said, "Is it about Ukon?" He hoped he hadn't gotten sicker.

"Not directly, no," Onshi said. He crouched down in front of Sakon, holding out a paper. It was his homework. A few of the problems, written in Sakon's dark, round handwriting, were marked wrong with neat red X's. Beneath, every problem with Ukon's light, crooked numbers was widely circled.

"Do you remember the tenth classroom rule, Sakon-kun?" Onshi asked gently.

Sakon stared at him blankly.

"'Cheating in any form by any one at any time will not be tolerated,'" Onshi said. He pointed at the circled problems. "Can you explain this?"

Cheating? Sakon took the paper, looking at all the circled problems, all the ones Ukon had done. Letting his brother have fun was _cheating_?

"No... sensei," Sakon finally said, staring at the problems. "I can't."

x

A/N: Meian means "light and darkness," a reference to how the skin of Kamibana members are half-black and half-white. Thanks for reading so far, and please, review!


	7. Snake in the Grass

I seem to be developing a pattern when it comes to writing this fic. I put it off for as long as possible, and then once I start, it just keeps going. Thank you for all your reviews, and I hope you enjoy this chapter, and the bit of foreshadowing at the end!

Disclaimer: All the previous still applies.

x

Thicker Than Water

Snake in the Grass

x

"What's wrong?" Natsugusa whispered, as Sakon stomped into the room and took his seat beside her. He had two papers clutched in his hand: his homework from last night, and a blank worksheet.

"I gotta do it over," Sakon muttered. He glared at the blank paper, and then reached up to swipe at angry tears. "Onshi-sensei said I was cheating."

Natsugusa looked at Sakon's paper, perplexed. "But your homework was finished, right?" she said.

"It doesn't count if Ukon does it," Sakon said.

"Why not?" Natsugusa said. "I get help from my brother all the time."

"I don't know!" Sakon said.

Onshi had come into class, and gave Sakon a warning look. "Sakon-kun, remember to use your inside voice, okay?"

Sakon shot Onshi the most venomous glare he could muster, though the effect was rather ruined when he started crying again. Onshi turned away without noticing, though most of the kids around Sakon were staring at him. "We're going to practice our vocabulary now. Does everyone have their lists?"

The students started pulling out the papers with the week's vocabulary words so they could practice copying the characters. Sakon refused to join in for all of fifteen seconds before he slowly pulled out his list as well. As he copied the words, all he could think of was Ukon's fragile handwriting.

x

When Ukon had stepped into the nurse's office that morning, it had been empty. The nurse wasn't there yet, and the lights were out. He felt along the wall for what seemed like forever before he found the light switch.

The room was cheerless, though someone had tried to improve it with blue-green paint. There was a sink in a long counter with a bunch of boxes stacked on it, each box labeled with a picture of a band-aid or gauze or an eye with liquid dripping into it. Just looking at the last box made Ukon's eyes water. He wiped his eyes on his scarf, sniffed hard to keep his nose from leaking, and glanced at the rest of the room.

The nurse's desk was cluttered with papers, folders, and medical equipment, but there was a long, padded bench in front of it. Ukon sat on the bench to wait.

He waited a very long time. He found a clock, and watched the second hand circle it three whole times before he concluded that there was a good chance that the nurse would never show up. Maybe no one would find him, and he'd just wait here forever. Ukon was tired, so he lay down on the bench and shut his eyes, to wait for forever to come and go.

There were a few very obvious differences between the twins, and a few not quite as obvious. However, they also had more in common than most would think. For example, just looking at the two, most would think that Sakon was more jumpy, more rash, and much less patient, while Ukon could sit in the same spot for hours. But this wasn't true. Both of the twins could be infinitely patient, as long as they had each other.

When they were separate, it was Ukon who would usually get nervous first, who would almost always start watching the clock and watching the door and, when he had the energy, get up and pace a bit. Sakon did better on his own, because he wasn't as vulnerable as Ukon.

However, today was an exception. Ukon was too tired to be impatient. In fact, he'd fallen asleep before the second hand could go around the clock again.

It was after lunch before the nurse showed up. She walked into her office, took off her coat, and hung it on the hook on the back of the door. Then she sat behind her desk and started attending to her paperwork.

It wasn't until she stood up, holding a file to put in the file cabinet in the main office, that she saw Ukon. She let out a startled yelp, dropping the file and jerking Ukon out of his sleep. "Oh... oh my goodness," she said, placing her hand over her heart. "Hello? Have you been here the whole time?"

Ukon sat up, groggily. "What whole time?" he asked. His voice was barely audible.

"Oh my goodness!" The nurse hurried around the edge of her desk and crouched down in front of Ukon, looking worriedly into his eyes. "Didn't you go down to the main office? They didn't tell me someone was in here."

Ukon looked at her blankly. She sighed, and hurried to pull out a thermometer. "Honestly," she said, "how do they expect me to treat these children when they don't tell me they're here..." She turned around to grab a tissue out of the box on her desk and wiped up the mucus that had dripped under Ukon's nose. He stared dazedly at the nurse.

"All right, open your mouth," the nurse said. Ukon did, and she pushed the thermometer under his tongue. He immediately gagged but she held the thermometer in place. "Shut your mouth and breath through your nose. Good boy," she said, grabbing another tissue and wiping at his nose. What kind of a parent sent their child to school in this condition?

After a minute, she pulled out the thermometer and grimaced. He was 100.3 degrees Fahrenheit. "Do you have a mother at home?" she asked sharply.

A sad look crossed Ukon's face, and he croaked, "No."

"That explains it. A mother would never send her child to school like this," the nurse muttered. "I can see you've got a drippy nose and a fever. Do you have any other complaints?"

Ukon had to think a moment. No one ever really asked him how he felt. "My head hurts a lot," he said. "And the places where I bend, like my elbows and fingers."

"Headache and achy joints," the nurse mumbled. She'd pulled out a sheet and was filling it out with the symptoms. This boy was going home. "We'll find someone to escort you back to your father. I think there's a chuunin substitute teacher who doesn't have a class today."

"Like Onshi?" Ukon asked.

"Well, yes, but he's a full-time teacher," the nurse said. "Are you in Onshi's class?" She wrote that down on the form, under "Teacher's Name." "Now, what's your name?"

"Shinken Ukon," he said.

The nurse was halfway to the file cabinet to find Ukon's file when she stopped. Shinken? He didn't look like a Shinken; they all had light brown hair. This must have been the one she'd heard of a few months ago, whose mother had run away. Mizuiri... The nurse sighed. She was quite old, and had worked at the school a long time. She remembered when Mizuiri had been a student. She'd come in at least once a month to get her bruises and cuts healed from fights she started with other boys. The nurse hadn't expected her to settle down at only twenty-three years old and become a mother.

Then again, she hadn't expected her, once she started a family, to abandon it.

Another thought occurred to the nurse. She turned to peer suspiciously at Ukon. "Where's your twin?" she asked. She didn't see a second head on Ukon's back.

"In class," Ukon said.

"You sent your inferior to class without you?" the nurse said incredulously. She turned to look for Ukon's file again.

"He dropped me off before school."

The nurse found the file for the only Shinken in Onshi's class: Shinken Sakon. She scowled, opened the file, and skimmed the page. Sakon was the dominant twin, Ukon was the inferior. She put the file back in the cabinet and slammed the drawer shut. She had more important things to do that play along with a first year student's idea of a practical joke.

"Go back to your brother," she said shortly, returning to her desk.

Ukon gave her an incredulous look. "But I'm sick."

"You're the inferior, aren't you?" the nurse said, wondering why she was even explaining. "Of course you're sick."

When she sat down and tried to ignore him, he stood unsteadily, shuffled a few steps towards the door, and stumbled. He barely caught himself on the padded bench. "I don't think I can..."

Ukon was interrupted by a coughing fit, and had to sit down, doubled over with his head almost between his knees. After almost a minute, the coughs had subsided to heavy wheezing. If he tried to move, he was afraid he'd start again.

The nurse watched with tight lips, trying not to look too sympathetic. She'd always been over compassionate, even to inferiors. "I'll take you," she said, scooping up the Shinken to carry him to Onshi's classroom. She hoped she wouldn't catch his cold.

x

In Onshi's class, Sakon had just finished his vocabulary when there was a knock on the door. Onshi answered it, quietly spoke to someone outside, and then said, "Sakon-kun, could you come down here?"

What had he done wrong _this_ time, Sakon wondered, getting up and walking to the door. He froze.

A woman was standing in the hall, holding his brother. Ukon looked even worse. His skin was deathly white, his eyes were bloodshot and sunken, his hair lank and stringy with sweat under his hat. "Ukon!" Sakon reached up to grab his brother's hand. It was dry and clammy.

"I don't have time to take care of sick inferiors," the nurse said. "Your clan can deal with him." She sat Ukon on his feet, and he and Sakon grabbed each other's shoulders to help keep Ukon's legs from giving out.

"You won't help him?" Sakon said.

"I can't," the nurse said shortly. "I'm sorry. Ask your father what to do for your twin." She turned and left.

"Please take him back to your seat, Sakon-kun," Onshi said. "Class is still going on."

"I'll be fine," Ukon whispered. Sakon wasn't sure he believed this, but he turned around and let Ukon to climb into his back.

The class was staring as Sakon went back to his seat, amazed at the sudden reappearance of his second head and watching Ukon's two scarves streaming out behind Sakon like flags.

Onshi returned to the front of the class, waited for Sakon to sit, and spoke. "Now! We've got about... half an hour until free time, so lets to some more math drills until then."

Several students groaned. One raised his hand. "Onshi-sensei, can't we start free time early?"

Many more students quickly shushed him. The civilian students got to play during free time, but the students in the ninja program had to train. They didn't want any extra training.

Onshi grinned. "I don't think we will today," he said. "Everyone pull out a paper, we'll be doing the problems out loud."

The students found their paper and pencils, and Onshi said, "Five plus eight equals..."

Ukon stirred behind Sakon. "Thirteen," he whispered hoarsely.

Sakon wrote down the answer before he whispered back, "You don't have to help. You're sick."

"I want to. It's more..." He coughed sharply. "... more fun than just sitting here."

Sakon didn't know how math could be fun, but if it helped Ukon feel better, that was fine with him. Ukon was better at it anyway. "Okay."

"Nine plus three equals..."

"Twelve," Ukon whispered.

Ukon gave Sakon every answer. By the time the drill was finished, his voice sounded stronger than it had all day.

x

The eight civilian students ran out to the playground by themselves, pulling on their thick coats and mittens. The students in the ninja program watched them forlornly from just inside the door to the school. They didn't want to go outside until they were forced to; during training, they were only allowed to wear thin windbreakers and gloves.

Onshi stood behind the students, smiling cheerfully at the prospect of going outside. The other students wondered enviously if his chuunin vest held in warmth better than their jackets.

"Today we'll be using our practice shuriken. Did anyone forget to bring theirs?" A white hand attached to a black arm rose uncertainly. "Anyone other than Meian-kun?" Onshi amended, already reaching into a pocket on his vest to find some practice shuriken for Meian.

No one had.

"Good!" Onshi beamed at his students. "All right, everyone head outside. Oh, Sakon-kun, could you wait a moment?"

Sakon stopped and looked warily at his teacher. Natsugusa hesitated, decided she probably wouldn't be allowed to wait for him, and went outside.

"What is it?" Sakon said, crossing his arms.

Onshi ignored his attitude. He crouched down so he was eye-level with Sakon and said, "I know you're worried about your brother. If you want, he can stay inside where it's warmer."

Sakon was so surprised he forgot to glare. Even Ukon twisted around to try to look at Onshi, to see if he was joking. "Really?"

"Yes, he can stay right in here," Onshi said. "He can sit next to the door and watch you, so you'll be able to see him. Does that sound all right?"

"Yeah! Thanks, Onshi-sensei." Sakon grinned, and then helped Ukon to step out of his back and sit down next to the wall. "You'll be okay in here, right?"

"Sure," Ukon said. He still had the coat Sakon had given him that morning, as well as two scarves and hats.

"Great! Um, here," Sakon pulled out all the tissues he'd folded up and put in his back pocket, and handed them to Ukon. "Stay right here until I get back, okay?"

"Actually, I think I'll run laps through the sch—" Ukon coughed, "school."

Sakon looked sheepish. Of course Ukon would stay in place. "Sorry." He ran outside, waved to Ukon over his shoulder, and joined the other kids lining up to practice with their shuriken.

Onshi watched him go, shaking his head. "You sure are an odd set of Shinken twins," he commented, partially to Ukon and partially to nothing. He was about to head out himself when he remembered how cold it was. Some hot coffee might help that...

He turned around, heading to the teacher's lounge to get his caffeine fix. For a moment, Ukon was alone. He watched his brother and the other students outside, trying not to feel jealous that he couldn't join them. However, before long, one of them joined him.

A girl left the line, snuck up to the door of the school, and peered inside to make sure no one was in the hall. When she was sure there was no one to catch her, she opened the door and slipped inside. "You're Sakon-kun's twin, right?" she said, her voice low, as if she were discussing a secret with the Kusakage herself.

"Yeah," Ukon said.

The girl nodded. "I heard Sakon-kun and Natsugusa-chan talking earlier. They wanted to get chocolate taiyaki for you, but they couldn't find it."

"Oh," Ukon said. That was nice. He wished he'd actually got it.

"Here." The girl pulled something wrapped in waxy paper from a large pocket on her skirt. The paper was emblazoned with the logo for the Wasanbon confectionary shop. "It's taiyaki."

The girl handed it to Ukon from several feet away, as if she were afraid to touch him. He unwrapped it. "Thanks."

"Don't tell anyone I gave it to you," the girl said, glancing around again for anyone who might see her. She backed away from Ukon. "Mama said that if Shinken inferiors get too far away from their dominants, they go wild and eat little girls. Just eat the taiyaki, okay?"

Ukon was stunned. Why would he want to eat someone? The girl didn't say anything else, just pushed open the door and ran outside again.

He looked down at the taiyaki again. It didn't look as tasty now. Still, he'd spent several hours today outside of Sakon, and that made him hungry. He glumly started eating the taiyaki, watching his brother train outside.

x

The Spirit Meadows hadn't changed in decades. All that varied were the patches of freshly turned dirt, the places where dead Kusanin were laid to rest – without any sort of grave markers. The Kamibana clan insisted there be no markers to blemish their meadows. They demanded very few things from the citizens of Kusagakure, but what they asked for, they always got.

Certainly, the Spirit Meadows hadn't changed at all since Zetsu had last visited them, years ago. He walked slowly through the snow and dead grass, idly remembering the places in the meadow where he had played and the places where he had helped bury various Kusanin. It was good to be home, in these familiar fields, even if for only a short time, and even if he could no longer call it his home...

"Well, Zetsu-san. Imagine meeting you here." A voice from behind him chuckled lightly. "So near your old family! I wonder, what would Leader-sama say if he knew you'd come here?"

Zetsu's more rational side restrained his wilder half from saying anything rude. "I wasn't aware that you and Sasori-san had been sent on a mission in Kusagakure," he said. He didn't turn around. He'd rather gaze on the snowy Spirit Meadows.

"We hadn't," the voice answered. "We have no mission right now. The only orders we have are the same orders we always have. 'As a member of Akatsuki, you are not to return to the village of your origin, except on my orders.'" He did a fairly decent imitation of Pein.

Zetsu tried to ignore him, so he walked around in front of Zetsu to look at the meadow as well. "A barren field. Dead blades of grass beneath piles of frozen water. Quite a depressing view." He smirked. "It must be a much more pleasant view in the summer."

"What do you want, Orochimaru-san?" Zetsu asked patiently. Zetsu snapped, "_I don't remember asking for company, Orochimaru_."

Orochimaru laughed. "I'm sure you don't! I am merely considering whether or not our leader would be interested in hearing about where you've being going in your spare time."

"He holds myself in much higher regard than he does you, Orochimaru-san," Zetsu said. "He won't take your word for it that I've been here."

"But he will take Sasori-san's," Orochimaru said. "And he is more than willing to back his partner's claims."

Zetsu was silent a moment. "_Monster_."

"I've been called worse." Orochimaru smiled at him, narrowing his eyes slightly; the look was half reptilian and half feminine. "But, as long as we're both here... I've heard a few rumors about your home village, Zetsu-san. I was wondering if you'd know anything about them?"

"What rumors?" Zetsu asked. This was blackmail, and quite well planned at that.

"Of a sword," Orochimaru said. He turned to look Zetsu directly in the eyes. "Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi. The legendary blade that the first Kusakage wielded. It's said to rest in a shrine at the center of this village, yes?" Zetsu could see the greed shimmering in Orochimaru's golden-green irises.

"That's what is said," Zetsu agreed, "_by people who don't know what they're talking about_."

Orochimaru's smile widened. "Oh?" It was clear that he'd already known that the sword was not in its shrine. "Then where is it?"

"I don't know," Zetsu said honestly.

The smile snapped down into a scowl. "Really," Orochimaru said. "You don't know anything?"

Zetsu hesitated. Should he tell...? "I've heard," he said, "that the Shinken clan guards the sword. No one knows where it's kept except them."

Orochimaru nodded. He wasn't putting on any false expressions now. His eyes pierced Zetsu's, probing for information. "Tell me about the Shinken clan."

"They're one of the two most powerful families in Kusagakure, the other one being the clan I'm from," Zetsu said. "_Mine's much better than those stuck-up Shinken_. They have a kekkei genkai. Every child born is a twin; one grows up to be strong, and the weaker one becomes the first's tool. In battle with Shinken twins, it's like trying to battle two ninja, a conventional one and an invisible one that can come from anywhere."

"And the weaker twin is little more than a slave? I might like this clan." A thoughtful look crossed Orochimaru's face. "I suppose the weaker ones would be rather resentful of their roles..."

"I doubt it," Zetsu said. "The inferiors are nearly puppets. No minds of their own."

"All humans have minds," Orochimaru countered.

"_That's ironic, coming from you_." Zetsu grimaced at the slip. "I'm sorry."

Orochimaru waved off the apology, still deep in thought. Finally, he smiled again. "Thank you, Zetsu-san. You're quite informative. I don't think we'll have to let Leader-sama know about where you've been, do you?"

"Not at all, Orochimaru-san," Zetsu said. Now that he knew his secret was safe, he left as quickly as possible, sinking into the snowy ground and becoming part of it. "I'm quite glad to help you find the sword I was looking for," he whispered morosely to himself, far beneath the earth. "_But I don't think you need to know that the sword was already stolen over half a year ago. Ha!_"

Orochimaru remained standing in the Spirit Meadows, surveying the snowy scene and thinking. He'd heard many things about this sword, under various names. Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi: Sword of Heaven's Gathering Clouds. Kusanagi no Tsurugi: Grass-Cutter, or Sword of Snake.

"So. Shinken clan," Orochimaru murmured. Despite what Zetsu said, he didn't feel they would be much of a threat. When Orochimaru had gotten as much use as he could out of the Akatsuki and left, one of the first places he'd return to would be Kusagakure.

The Kusanagi would be his, and he was willing to slaughter every living member of the Shinken clan to obtain it.

x

A/N: Yes, the Kusanagi actually does go by all those names. There's an article on it in Wikipedia, it lists all of the different titles of the sword in the first paragraph. Thanks for reading this far, and please review! Praise, criticism, flames, questions, or just your thoughts on the chapter would all be appreciated.


	8. Anything You Can Do

Ack, I'm sorry this chapter's up a little late! (Not that any of you knew, but I meant to have it done five days ago... eheheh...) Anyway, thanks for all your reviews, and please enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: Previous still applies; I own nothing. However, if I bug Kishimoto long enough, I'm sure he'll give me some of the filler characters. At least Ranmaru. I like Ranmaru.

x

Thicker Than Water

Anything You Can Do

x

As it turned out, everyone had been right about inferiors. They were perpetually sick. Ukon hadn't been completely healthy once since the cold he'd caught that winter. When the flu went around the village, he got that; in the spring, he got strep throat; he got another cough in early March; and he revealed that he had allergies at the start of summer. Sakon got used to carrying wads of tissues in his shuriken pouch, and the seat behind him in class was left empty in case Ukon sneezed.

Although Ukon's illnesses had become the norm, Sakon still didn't believe they were normal.

"Daddy?" Sakon said one morning, in late May at the end of his first year of school – Ukon was still better than him at reading and math, but they were both better at hiding when he helped Sakon in class. "Why's Ukon always sick?"

"Because he's an inferior, Sakon. We've been over this," Futago said wearily.

"I don't get it," Sakon said. "Why does that make him sick?"

"It's just the way he was born. Inferior." Futago was distracted, sitting in the living room and reading the information on a mission that the Kusakage had given him. She'd said this would be a dangerous, long-term mission, but so far it didn't seem like it would even take him out of the village. "Don't you have school today?"

"No. The older students have end of year tests today but Onshi-sensei says we don't," said Sakon. He didn't have to go back to school until next week, when all the other students would have their test results and everyone would be promoted a grade. This time next year, Sakon would be taking a test as well. "You didn't answer my question."

Futago sighed, and stood up. "Fine, I'll give you a demonstration. Futan, out."

Futan slid out of Futago's back and stood beside him, looking at his brother confusedly.

"Look at us." Futago grabbed Futan's left arm and held it next to his own right arm. "Which of us looks stronger?"

Ukon twisted around to silently peek over Sakon's shoulder. "You, Daddy," Sakon said.

"Good. Now, Futan – balance on one foot."

Futan did as he was told, but could only stay up for a few seconds before wobbling and almost falling. Futago caught his arm while he put his other foot down and regained balance. "I can't..."

"Fine." Futago stood on one foot himself, balancing easily. "Which one of us has better coordination?"

"You," Sakon said.

"Good," Futago said. "Futan, recite the vow of the noble ninja of Kusagakure. The whole thing. No breaks."

Futan looked at his brother like he was insane, but complied. "That we may have the strength of two in the body of one; that we may have the b-body... of one with the mind of two; that we may have..." he coughed, "may h-have... the souls of those who... w-wh..." He had to stop to take a deep breath. "Who went bef-fore us, t-to... gui... F-futa..."

Futago grabbed his brother's shoulder to keep him from collapsing, he was wheezing so hard. "That we may have the souls of those who went before us, to guide our minds; that we may have the souls of those who come after us, to carry our strength; that we may have the souls of the fields, the prairies, and the meadows that fill our world, to shelter our bodies; we vow to protect our Village Hidden in the Grass and our brothers and sisters who call it home," he said evenly. "Now, Sakon. Which of us is less feeble?"

"You," Sakon said.

"Good. Futan, rest." Futan slid back into his brother without a word. "Does that answer your question, Sakon?"

"No," Sakon said. "What makes Ukon and Uncle Futan weaker than us?"

Futago scowled. "Don't call him uncle!" he snapped. "They are born weaker, Sakon, remember that! Never ask me again!"

"Yes, sir," Sakon said fearfully, and backed away. He ran to the door, hesitated a moment to see if his father would yell at him to stay, and then left.

How had his son become so foolish, Futago wondered. Still scowling, he turned back to the mission. A patrol mission, long-term, in the Spirit Meadows. Apparently a Kamibana had reported that they'd seen something suspicious recently in the outskirts of the village, perhaps evidence of Akatsuki activity. Futago didn't like the sound of this mission. He preferred to spend as little time as possible in the Spirit Meadows; who knew whose graves he'd walk over...

An unexpected whisper distracted him. "Ukon-kun wasn't born weaker," Futan rasped.

For a moment, Futago was stunned into silence. "I thought I'd broke you of the habit of making unnecessary comments years ago."

"It's not... unnecessary."

What was getting into everyone? "You should know this better than I, Futan. Even if Ukon wasn't born weaker, he _should_ have been. You see that, don't you?"

Futan didn't answer, so Futago turned back to reading. Why was he bothering to explain, anyway? It wasn't as if an inferior could actually comprehend such a complex answer.

x

"How much do you remember?" Ukon asked, sitting low in the grass around the temple in the center of the village.

Sakon was sitting in front of him, leaning back on his elbows in the grass while Ukon leaned against the temple itself. "I dunno," he said. "A bit."

This was one of their favorite hiding places for them to let Ukon come out. The temple to the Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi may have been in the center of the village, but it was well hidden by the tall grass, and no one walked near the temple anyway. As long as they sat low, no one would be able to see them, and they could tell if an adult was coming up in time for Ukon to get back in Sakon.

"Say what you know," Ukon said.

Sakon thought a moment. "That we can have two bodies in one; that we can have two minds and souls; that the souls of those who were past us will... um... guide our souls... wait... And something something minds of meadows and strong bodies." He grinned at his own mistakes. "Am I close?"

"Not really," Ukon said, smiling back. "Now let me try."

Sakon nodded and sat up, listening.

"That we may have the strength of two in the body of one," he began; "that we may have the body of one with the mind of two; that we may have the souls of those who went before us, to guide our minds; that we may h-ha..." He suddenly sneezed twice. "Aw, weeds," he muttered, frowning.

Sakon was staring at him in open-mouthed awe. "You remember all that?" he said. "Keep going."

"But I messed up," Ukon said.

"So? You were doing great!" Sakon said. "Who cares?"

"I couldn't finish it!" Ukon said. "That means I'm still an inferior, right?"

"Well... I dunno," Sakon said. He shrugged. "You did better than me, didn't you?"

"I guess," Ukon said grudgingly, but he did seem to brighten at the suggestion.

As soon as they had come out here, Ukon had said they should try to remember the vow that their father and uncle had recited. Whatever it was, it seemed important. And from what Ukon could tell from the conversation, something about that speech helped separate the dominant Shinken from the inferior Shinken. Perhaps if he learned it and could recite the entire thing from memory, he'd get to be a normal boy. Perhaps he could be a student. Perhaps he could walk on his own.

Maybe their father was right, though, and there was something inherently "inferior" about Ukon. He couldn't finish the vow.

"Besides," Sakon said, "remember what Mommy said?"

Ukon didn't respond; he didn't have to. They both remembered her words, the night she had left.

_You are equally intelligent, equally important, and equally strong on the inside_.

"'Cept it's not true," Ukon said, with a small smile. "I'm smarter than you."

"No, you're not!" Sakon said.

"Am too! Who does all your math?"

"I could do it myself if I wanted—"

"Excuse me," a new voice said.

Sakon and Ukon jerked their heads up guiltily, afraid it was someone they knew. But a complete stranger looked back at them. He was a few years older than them, and probably a little bit older than Natsugusa's ten-year-old brother, too. He was wearing a forehead protector with a foreign symbol. "Sorry, I'm not from around here," the stranger said. "Do you know which way the Shinken clan lives?"

Sakon and Ukon each pointed in the direction of their home.

The stranger glanced in the direction they were pointing, pushing up his glasses with one finger to help him see more easily. Sunlight reflected off the lenses, temporarily blinding the twins. "Thank you," he said, and started walking in the direction they indicated.

"Hey!" Sakon said, getting to his feet.

The stranger stopped and looked at him. "Yes?"

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Sakon demanded. Ukon looked at him, bewildered. Why was he making a scene? What if he went to their father and told him that they'd been separate from each other.

The stranger paused, considered the twins a moment, and then said, "My name is none of your business. I'm here on the orders of my superiors."

"That doesn't tell us anything," Sakon complained.

"Why? What do you want to know?"

Sakon hesitated a moment, and then blurted out, "Have you ever met Shinken Mizuiri?"

Ukon inhaled sharply, and Sakon glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. Their gazes met, and they shared a moment of understanding. They almost always understood each other's thoughts.

This stranger was a foreigner, from outside the village. Their mother had been missing for over a year. No one from Kusagakure had seen here, but there was a chance this stranger could have seen her...

"She's a missing-nin," Sakon went on. "And she's got blue hair, like ours."

"Except longer," Ukon added. "She's our mommy."

For a moment, the stranger didn't respond. "No," he said. "I haven't seen her."

Before they could ask anything else, he turned away and immediately vanished. Sakon and Ukon stared at the spot where he'd been, startled. It wasn't often a ninja actually used a technique right in front of them.

"He's fast," Sakon said, a slightly awed hush in his voice.

Ukon nodded. "Sakon? Let's go home."

"All right." Sakon kneeled down next to Ukon to let him get back inside, and then they headed back towards their house, in the same direction that the stranger had disappeared.

x

"Your report, Kabuto-kun?" Orochimaru asked.

Kabuto shut the door into the hotel room – it didn't matter that the hotel had been abandoned for years, better safe than risk being heard by a homeless taking shelter in the building – and kneeled before his two masters, Orochimaru and Sasori. "I saw no evidence of the Kusanagi within Kusagakure," he said. "I explored the entirety of the Shinken territory. They had no decoy hiding places within their territory. Only the empty temple in the center of the village."

"Thank you, Kabuto-kun," Sasori said, then stole a glance at his partner. "Didn't I say we wouldn't find anything?"

"Who says we haven't?" Orochimaru said. "We know the Shinken don't want to advertise the fact that they're hiding the sword, or else there would be more fake hiding places, to mislead thieves. Clearly, they think the temple is enough. Either they're fools to think no one will discover the trick, or they've hidden the sword better than we'd thought." He turned again to Kabuto. "Did you learn anything else?"

Kabuto thought. There wasn't very much that Orochimaru or Sasori would be interested in. They probably knew already that the village was having a hard time finding more children to become ninja, and that the Kusa ANBU were wasting much of their time and effort tracking the Akatsuki – more time than any other village except Amegakure. "A member of the Kamibana clan spied someone they suspected to be an ANBU member in their Spirit Meadows. It was most likely you, Orochimaru-sama. If they had seen Zetsu-san, they wouldn't have informed the authorities."

"Oh?" Sasori seemed interested. "Why not?"

"They still consider him one of their own," Orochimaru said dismissively, as if he could hardly bother to concern himself with Sasori's ignorance.

Kabuto almost smiled at the irony of Orochimaru's attitude. He clearly didn't know that Zetsu was on more than mere friendly terms with his clan; he had two young daughters that he visited with some regularity. Much of the money he made through his work in the Akatsuki was sent to the mother and stepfather of his children. However, neither Orochimaru nor Sasori needed to know any of that. Kabuto enjoyed having an edge over his superiors.

"The Kusakage has stationed guards in the Spirit Meadows on the look-out for Akatsuki members. These guards have no association with Zetsu-san's clan; they wouldn't hesitate to report even his presence."

"We can let Zetsu-san find that out the hard way," Orochimaru said. "Anything else?"

"Yes, a bit of information that may or may not become relevant," Kabuto said.

"Everything's relevant, Kabuto-kun," Sasori said. "What is it?"

"A woman, Shinken Mizuiri, maiden name Nomiya Mizuiri. She was a member of the clan by marriage; through trial-and-error, the clan has discovered that its kekkei genkai can transfer much of the time to children with only one Shinken parents, so they will occasionally allow a member to marry an outsider to prevent in-breeding."

"How is she important?" Orochimaru asked.

"Just over a year ago, she ran away from the village, becoming a missing-nin," Kabuto said. "She left behind her husband and son."

"And their inferiors?" Orochimaru asked.

"They don't count," Sasori said. "They're mere puppets."

"I think you've spent too much time around _your_ puppets, Sasori-san. You've ceased to be able to distinguish them from humans," Orochimaru said.

"_And_ their inferiors," Kabuto said, to break up the disagreement before it got too far. "I don't know whether or not she would know where the Kusanagi is, since she was never truly recognized as a Shinken, and from what I've heard she wasn't very popular among the clan. However, if we could locate her, she might have some information."

"But locating a single missing-nin is often far more trouble than it's worth," Orochimaru said. "For now, we shall focus our efforts on the Shinken clan itself."

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama."

"Is that it?" Sasori asked. When Kabuto confirmed that it was, he said, "Fine. Then you're dismissed. When you return to your village, act as if you were never gone. If anyone questions where you've been the past few days, say you were on a mission out of the village and your sensei asked you not to divulge the details of it." Kabuto's sensei was also a spy of Sasori's, although a jutsu had been performed on his memory so that he never remembered that he was a spy unless Sasori's name was mentioned.

"Thank you, Sasori-sama," Kabuto said, and rose to his feet. He was out of the hotel room and almost at the stairs leading downwards when someone stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

Kabuto turned around and, voice low, said, "Yes, Orochimaru-sama?"

"Anything else?"

"Naturally." If Sasori had been the one to follow Kabuto and ask, he would have said "No," but Orochimaru was his favorite of his two masters. "In their research on the Akatsuki, the ANBU has detailed descriptions on you and Zetsu, a less accurate one of Sasori, and is all but ignorant about the others. However, their guards have been given descriptions of your uniform, but nothing else. If you walked straight into the village, as long as you weren't wearing the Akatsuki coat, the guards in the Spirit Meadows wouldn't recognize you."

Orochimaru nodded thoughtfully. "The Kusakage always was foolish, guarding her secrets when sharing them could mean protecting the village," he said. "Thank you, Kabuto-kun."

"Of course, Orochimaru-sama." It was his pleasure to serve. When it suited him.

However, more power for his masters (particularly Orochimaru, who was less likely to see his followers as simple "puppets") meant more power for himself. It was in his own best interest to help Orochimaru find the Kusanagi.

And find it they would.

x

A/N: Nomiya means "field palace." Thanks for reading, and please review! Any comments you'd like to say would be appreciated.


	9. Cannibal Burial

I can't believe it took me three months to update! I'm so, so, so sorry for the wait. I'm not dead, I swear. The next chapter will be up much more quickly, I've already got it half done. For now, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please review!

Also, I've currently got a poll up in my profile: I'm wondering what kinds of Naruto fans like to read my fanfics. There's a list of 35 characters, pretty much all the characters that get a major role in at least one of my fics. If you want, go vote on all the characters you like – it's set up so you can vote on as many as you want. The link's at the very very top of my profile. Thanks!

x

Thicker Than Water

Cannibal Burial

x

When the first year students' one-week summer break had ended, they returned to school and found that their second year was much the same as the previous one.

By this time, all the students were expected to start learning how to add and subtract two-digit numbers, like 56 + 31, really hard numbers like that. As long as they didn't have to carry the tens, Sakon could do it just fine. 50 + 30 80, and 6 + 1 7, so 56 + 31 87. It was when Onshi-sensei assigned problems like 56 + 38 that he had trouble, because 6 + 8 is over 10. But Ukon could do those.

Sakon did as much of his homework as he could and Ukon filled in the gaps, reading the questions and telling Sakon the answers so Sakon could write them down in his own handwriting. If they couldn't both be students, then they could at least be the best single-student team in the school, two children being graded under one name, being graded as one person.

They marked the passage of time by Ukon's illnesses, a cycle of disease that lasted about four weeks before he picked up the next bug in the village. Sakon only caught one of his brother's illnesses, a cold that lasted him five days while it lasted Ukon thirty. When they asked their teacher Onshi why Ukon was always sicker (since their father never gave them a satisfactory answer), he told them that two Shinken twins produce a normal amount of antibodies – those are things in the blood that keep you from getting sick – but the inferior's antibodies usually migrate over towards the dominant's cells and protect them instead, so dominants rarely get sick.

Sakon apologized to Ukon for a week for being greedy with their antibodies, but Ukon said it was fine; no one could help what happened in their blood. It was their Shinken blood that made him weak to begin with.

The twins almost always went to Natsugusa's house after school to do homework, just because it was safer than their own house when Ukon wanted to separate from his brother. However, occasionally they went into the Shinken compound because Futago let Sakon buy more comics than Natsugusa's mother did. She thought her children should be reading real books instead of manga, so Natsugusa went with Sakon and Ukon to read theirs.

One day in late November, when the grass of Kusagakure had long since died for the winter and had only recently been given its burial by snow, they came home to find Futago had gotten there first.

"Oh, Sakon, excellent timing," Futago said. He was shifting through the closet they kept their extra sheets and blankets in. "Do you have much homework tonight?"

"I've got a weapon worksheet," Sakon said. The ninja program students had to do a paper where they wrote the names of weapons next to their pictures.

"That's fine. If you don't have time to finish it, I'll talk to your teacher. I'm sure he'll understand." He noticed Natsugusa. "Oh, hello. You are...?"

"Komugi Natsugusa," she said quietly.

"Ah, yes," he said. His voice was falsely easy. "Komugi. Mizuiri taught your older brother, didn't she?"

"You mean Sakon-kun and Ukon-kun's mom?" Natsugusa said. "Yeah."

Futago nodded. "I'm afraid you won't be able to play with Sakon today, Natsugusa-chan. He's coming with me," he said, pulling out a blanket and draping it over his shoulders like a cloak, leaving it just below Futan's neck in the back. "Sakon, get a blanket big enough to for Ukon. We're going out to the Spirit Meadows."

"Yes, sir," Sakon said. Ukon threw Natsugusa an apologetic look as Sakon turned away and started searching the closet for one of their favorite blankets, striped white and dark green. Deep blue-green was the twins' favorite color.

Natsugusa nodded, and backed towards the door. "I'm going home now," she said. Futago didn't reply, so she waved to Ukon and Sakon's back and left.

"Where are we going?" Sakon asked.

"I thought it's about time for you to get a look at the real ninja world," he said. "Today you'll be working with some jounin and me."

"What kind of work?" Sakon asked, and then added, "I can't fight yet."

"I know. You won't have to." Futago walked to the door to wait for Sakon to find a blanket. "I'll explain your job on the way. Hurry up."

x

Out in the Spirit Meadows where the Grass genin squads weren't required to shovel any streets clear, the snow went almost up to Sakon's knees. Every breath he took was a misty puff, and he had the blanket he'd brought for Ukon doubled up and wrapped around him to keep himself warm. He wondered how he'd stay warm when Ukon was outside him and needed the blanket for himself. On his back, he heard Ukon sneeze quietly into his scarf.

"Daddy, what are we doing?" Sakon asked. Up ahead, he could see people – some in the creamy-grey and wood-brown uniforms of Kusanin, some in black and white and green. "Who are they?"

"Those are Kusagakure jounin," Futago said, "and the Kamibana clan. You've heard about the Kamibana clan, haven't you?"

Sakon nodded, eyes wide. "I know about Kamibana Zetsu. He eats kids that don't listen to their parents."

Futago smiled grimly. "You must have learned that one at school. I've certainly never told you that."

"Then it's not true? I don't have to listen to you?" Sakon asked.

Futago gave him a slow, considering look, then cleared his throat. "It seems you don't know much about the rest of the clan, then. Unlike his family, Kamibana Zetsu is a missing-nin. He's not allowed to come back to this village, and if he tries then ANBU is supposed to stop him. However, the rest of the Kamibana clan is... not quite as bad as Zetsu. They're still part of this village."

"But do they eat kids?"

"They only eat the dead. They're scavengers."

"Oh." Sakon rubbed his arms nervously. He was pretty sure they wouldn't think he was dead, but he hoped they wouldn't try to eat Ukon. Ukon didn't move around much. He might look dead if they weren't paying enough attention. "Why do we have to be here?"

"Zetsu attacked." Futago said this shortly, tersely, as if this were supposed to explain everything and no more questions should be necessary, so Sakon didn't ask anything and didn't expect any answers.

But his brother did. Ukon coughed heavily into his scarf, and when he had recovered, whispered, "What happened?"

"What happened?" Sakon repeated out loud.

Futago gave him a quick, considering look, as if wondering how much he should say, and then nodded to himself, decisively. "You'll see soon enough," he said. "Zetsu killed three of the guards patrolling the meadows, keeping a look-out for any members of the Akatsuki. The Kusakage asked volunteers from the village to come help bury the dead. I thought you should help out – it will give you a taste of what ninja life will be like without putting you in any danger."

Sakon and Ukon looked at their father in utter horror. "Bury?" Ukon croaked.

"We can't!" Sakon said.

"Your job won't be too hard, Sakon," Futago said. "All you'll have to do is help dig the graves. You're too small to lift the bodies. The Kusakage specifically wanted Shinken members to come so they could use their inferiors to keep guard. Ukon, you'll keep an eye out for any more Akatsuki members, to make sure that they or Zetsu don't try to attack while we're distracted.

"But Daddy, I thought the Kamibana clan buried everyone," Sakon said. It was the only other thing he remembered about the clan.

Futago gave him an impressed look. "Very good. Usually, they do, yes," he said. "But they offered no assistance to the jounin who were attacked by Zetsu, and the Kusakage doesn't trust them to bury the bodies with proper respects, since they were killed by one of the clan's own. So, the clan is here to watch, while the rest of us do the work."

"Daddy, I don't want to—"

Futago stopped and grabbed Sakon's arm, jerking Sakon around to face him. "Sakon, you will have to do many things you don't want to," he said sharply, getting down on one knee. "But you'll have to do them anyway. You have to forget about what you want for yourself to ensure the good of everyone. That's the life of a ninja. Understand?"

Sakon nodded fearfully, blinking quickly in the icy air to keep from starting to cry. Usually, seeing his father mad like this wouldn't upset him, but between his anger and the cold and his worry about Ukon being eaten and having to bury dead bodies...

Futago's face softened. "It's too cold to cry, it'll freeze to your face," he said softly, wiping the tears from Sakon's cheeks. "I'm just trying to get you to understand, Sakon. Someday you'll be a jounin, too, and then you'll have to tell your child these things." He smiled crookedly; he didn't smile often. "To be honest, I don't want to do this either. I'd rather fight Zetsu myself than have to deal with the damage he left behind."

Sakon laughed quietly. "Me too," he said, though he didn't really think so.

Futago stood again, and took Sakon's hand. "Come on."

Together, they walked forward, to join the grave-diggers and the man-eaters.

x

Ukon twisted to look over Sakon's shoulder as they approached the group. He saw several people that looked normal, but almost twice as many were strange-looking people, with yellow and green and orange eyes, and strange, black-and-white skin. They reminded him of Meian, he realized suddenly. Part black, and part white. But none of them had the same pattern as Meian. Ukon turned his head to watch a woman they passed whose face and hands were black with tight white spirals. He couldn't see any more of her body than that. Some of them had tiny leaves or vines poking out from their collars or sleeves, too. Ukon wondered if they were hiding plants in their clothes.

They crossed to the other side of the group before Futago said, "Sakon, leave Ukon here. He'll keep watch for any suspicious activities."

"Okay," Sakon said. Ukon slipped out of his body, and Sakon turned around to drape his blanket around his shoulders. "You'll be okay, right?" Sakon asked.

Ukon's feet were already growing cold. All he had was sandals. This was ridiculous. "Um..."

A light hand rested on his shoulder. Ukon glanced up to see Futan. "He'll be fine," Futan said quietly.

Sakon nodded uncertainly. "If any of those Kamibana people look like they're gonna eat you, yell, okay?" he said.

"Okay." Ukon had never told Sakon about the thing that the girl from school had told him a year ago – that the girl's parents had said that inferior Shinken eat other kids. But Ukon knew that wasn't true, so he didn't think that the Kamibana would eat him, either. It was probably another lie.

"Sakon, come on."

"Yes, Daddy!" Sakon gave Ukon a quick hug, said, "Don't get sick again," and ran after their father.

Futan took off his blanket and shook it out. "Here, I'll show you h-how to..." He was cut off by a long coughing fit, that kept going until the thick misty puffs of air out of his mouth were reduced to only a few feeble streams, as it became harder and harder for him to pull a breath after each cough. Ukon watched in alarm. When Futan finally managed to draw one shaky breath, he wheezed, "Feet... warm."

"Yes, sir," Ukon said quietly.

Without trying to speak again, Futan showed Ukon how to unfold his blanket, lay it on the ground, sit on it and wrap the rest of it over himself, so that it kept his feet warm along with the rest of his body. They sat for a while in silence, until Futan started sniffing loudly.

Sakon always gave Ukon several tissues. He fumbled around under the blanket until he managed to pull out of his pocket and reached out of the blanket to hand it to Futan. "Here," he said.

"Thank you, Ukon-kun," Futan said. He accepted the tissue and blew his nose heavily into it.

"Are you always sick too?" Ukon asked. Futan nodded. "I thought ninja could go to the hospital when they're sick," Ukon said.

Futan smiled. "Not us."

"You mean, inferiors?" Ukon asked.

Futan nodded again.

They lapsed into silence again for about five minutes. "Do Kamibana really eat people?" Ukon asked.

"Only dead enemies of Grass," Futan said. "We're safe." He coughed, twice.

"Okay." Ukon wiped his nose with the blanket, and fell silent once again. He wanted to ask more, but he was out of tissues and had to sniff in his mucus, which tickled the back of his throat. He didn't want to open his mouth. He didn't want to start coughing like Futan did, until he couldn't breath.

Some of the scariest things in the world, Ukon thought, were things that could only happen to inferiors.

x

Over the hours, the sun lowered so that it was shining directly in Ukon and Futan's eyes, making them squint every time they raised their heads. They wouldn't be able to effectively do guard duty anymore, with the light blinding them, which was why neither of them noticed the black-and-red cloaked figure standing several hundred feet out in the snow, watching the burials. Inferior eyesight was bad enough, but they couldn't see a thing with all this light in their eyes.

They turned to listen, interested, as an argument broke out, some fight between the Kamibana clan and the group of jounin. It ended when one woman with goldish-green eyes and wavy striped skin started yelling at one of the jounin: "He's only a child! How dare you try to pass judgment on a little boy, he doesn't know what he's doing and he's hungry! We're all hungry. If you stuck-up inner village know-nothings paid an _ounce_ of attention to our clan you'd know how much we're suffering, and maybe if you bothered to help us when we hunt day in and day out for our meat and only catch a few dogs to feed the entire clan, then we wouldn't have to take our food from you!"

That apparently ended the argument, because everyone went back to work with only a few more dark mutters. The shovels of the jounin cut into the earth much more harshly than usual for a time afterwards. Ukon wondered what the fight had been about.

A few minutes later, slow footsteps came up behind them, the first visitors Futan and Ukon had received so far. Ukon looked up as Meian walked past him. He was the boy who never seemed to pay attention to anything in school. "Meian-kun?"

Meian turned around, blinked, and glanced around several times. Ukon tried again. "Meian-kun."

That time Meian looked down and saw Ukon. "Um," he said as a greeting.

Meian was very difficult to talk to. "How are you?" Ukon tried.

Meian thought for a long moment, and then sat down in the snow beside Ukon. "Hi."

"Hi." Ukon grinned. He'd never had a chance to talk to Meian himself, but he heard other kids talking to him. He had always found it kind of funny. "I didn't know you were part of the Kamibana clan."

"Uh. Yeah." Meian looked down, and Ukon noticed that he was holding something, wrapped in several paper towels.

"What's that?" Ukon asked, pointing at the thing in paper towels. Meian shrugged.

"Is it food?" Ukon pressed.

Meian finally nodded, once. He folded back the paper towels a bit, took a bite, and recovered the food.

"What are you eating?"

Meian gave Ukon a clueless look before returning to his food without coming up with an answer. He folded back the paper towels around it again, just enough for Ukon to glimpse something thin and light pink, before Meian bit down on it with an alarmingly loud crunch. It occurred to Ukon for the first time that Meian had very sharp teeth.

"It's food," he explained, and wiped something red from his mouth. Ukon suddenly realized what that food must have been. He was too stunned to think anything except he hoped that nobody needed that hand.

Meian looked back at Ukon and apparently, something in Ukon's expression actually prompted him to talk without being addressed. "I, um, I..." He messed with the wrapping around his "food" as he gathered his thoughts. "I, uh, don't eat no alive humans. ... Any live humans."

"Oh," Ukon said. "Good." He glanced to Futan, but his uncle was just watching and smiling slightly, so Ukon figured he didn't have to try to run yet.

"And. Um. Usually. No Grass humans," Meian continued, before unwrapping his paper towel and taking another big, noisy, messy, bite. Ukon looked down and willed himself not to be ill when he saw the smears of blood on Meian's face.

"That's..." he had to shut his mouth and swallow hard before continuing, "very nice."

"Except, uh..." Meian thought hard for a long moment. "Shinken?"

Ukon's stomach and heart gave a synchronized, horrified jolt.

"Shinken gives us, uh, inferiors," Meian said. "When they dead. ... They died."

Ukon had to cover his mouth with one hand. That was more than he could take. Imagining that someday _he_ would be the gore smeared across a Kamibana face...

He leaned forward and puked on himself and the snow.

Futan gasped, then coughed. "U-ukon-kun?" he said. "Are you okay?"

Ukon shook his head, gasping in cold air through his mouth to try to keep from vomiting again and to keep from smelling it. No, he was not okay.

Meian looked at the mess with a dazed, baffled look as Futan struggled to his feet, and then helped Ukon up. Ukon gasped in a breath, started to cough, and gagged instead. "Ukon-kun, please, calm down," Futan said, lifting a corner of Ukon's blanket to wipe off his face. "We'll go f... find Futago and Sakon-kun. Okay?"

Ukon nodded, and shut his eyes. He was dizzy and lightheaded. He didn't even open his eyes as Futan guided him through the snow, towards the sounds of the shovels digging into the dirt. He only heard a dull blur of sound, voices that might have been his father or his uncle and voices he didn't recognize, until he felt hands on his shoulders and heard his own voice. "Ukon! Are you okay?"

Ukon opened his eyes and looked in Sakon's. He looked so worried—of course he did, they were brothers, closer than most brothers ever were. So Ukon managed to nod, once, for Sakon's sake.

"Sakon, your brother's not going to be any use as a guard now," Futago said. "You can let him rest in you."

"Thank you," Sakon said, and helped Ukon unwrap the soiled blanket from his shoulders. As soon as he was free, Ukon practically collapsed into Sakon. It was much warmer in his brother. More importantly, it was much safer. As long as he was with Sakon, the Kamibana clan couldn't touch him.

Exhausted, Ukon dropped his head, shut his eyes, and fell asleep before Sakon had even taken up his shovel to continue digging.

x

A/N: I'm over half done with chapter 10 already so this one will be much, much faster in coming up, hopefully around a couple of weeks. If you want, go vote on that poll in my profile, and please review! Thank you!


	10. Primary Secondary VS Dominant Inferior

So I started with this chapter already half finished, because chapter 9 ended up too long. And sat on it a few weeks. And then I had a sudden burst of inspiration and wrote a ton. And then ran out of inspiration and sat on it a while. And then decided that what I had was good enough for a chapter, so why not post it? And here we are. Sorry for the terribly delay in updates. My attention has recently been stolen by another fandom entirely.

x

Thicker Than Water

Primary and Secondary Versus Dominant and Inferior

x

After Futan and Ukon hurried away, Meian continued sitting in the same spot, utterly bewildered by whatever it was that had just happened, and wondering where his blue-haired classmate had gone. He probably would have kept sitting if his secondary personality hadn't prompted his primary personality to keep eating; Meian needed the food, after all. He was lucky to have gotten away with an ear and an entire hand off of one of the corpses and only have a few people yelling at him in response.

When Meian finished eating, he dropped the paper towels on the mess his classmate had left behind, and looked out over the snow-covered fields, his white hand shielding the sun from his black face. He saw the distant person that the Shinken guards hadn't been able to spot; that person was why Meian had come over. So, he blithely walked through the snow to greet the figure.

The figure noticed Meian long before he reached him, of course – green hair and black skin didn't blend well with snow – but didn't say anything until Meian reached him. "Hello, Meian-kun."

"Um," Meian said. "Hi. Uncle Zetsu."

Zetsu smiled tightly, and crouched down in the snow to give Meian a hug. "How long has it been? I don't think I've seen you in over a year," he said, and sighed. "You're still doing well in school, I hope?"

"Uh. Yeah?"

"Good. You're turning eight in a few months, aren't you?"

Meian thought for a long, long time. He forgot the question. "Huh?"

"Don't you turn eight in March?"

"Yeah."

Zetsu almost chuckled. "After that, it's only a couple of years until you get your plant, isn't it?" he said. "Have you thought about what you want?"

Meian nodded without hesitation. When he lost track of what the teacher was saying in class, he liked to look out the window and ponder over the kind of plant he'd like to receive when he was ten, to be surgically bonded with his neurological system and live off of the water and chakra in his body. All Kamibana children received their plant at age ten. "I want, um, moonseed," he said. "It a plant."

"Is it?" Zetsu said, smiling. It was a good choice. Moonseed was a vine, which would hold well to Meian's torso, and it grew tiny fruit with poisonous seeds. Of course, the poison wouldn't hurt Meian at all, but he could use it against his enemies. "I hope you get it."

Now that the primary personalities had greeted each other, the secondaries got caught up. "_I see you haven't killed yourself yet, Meian-kun_," Zetsu said. "_A hell of an accomplishment, I'm sure._"

"_As if I would allow myself to fall prey to any of the dull-witted endeavors I seem prone to_," Meian replied. "_Exceedingly slow I may be at many times – especially when I listen to my primary before my secondary – but overall stupid, I am not_."

"_Is that so? You have me wondering sometimes_," Zetsu said with a smirk.

Meian snorted. "_And I suppose you are so knowledgeable about myself and my behaviors, Uncle Zetsu, when you foolishly ran off in an attempt to buy your love's heart back?_"

Zetsu gave Meian a sharp glare. "_It was an _amicable_ split and you know it, pest. Our primaries adored each other but her secondary hated mine, so we both thought it best for the children if we separated._"

"_And you abandoned our village because...?_"

"_Money. Someone has to make sure my girls get what they need, and their mother and stepfather can't afford to raise them. You know what it's like_."

Meian nodded. "_Goddamn Kusakage,_" he muttered, "_The wretched woman doesn't do shit for our clan. It is high time that someone should just kill that bitch already._"

"_I tried_," Zetsu said, "_Though my primary still disapproves_." He chuckled darkly. "_The Kamibana scare her, you know._"

"_I know_," Meian said, smiling wickedly. Of course, they'd never do anything to take advantage of this—primaries get final word in all decisions—but it was comforting for the darker half of the Kamibana clan, knowing that they made the Kusakage feel just they way they wanted, terrified.

"_But you really are doing okay in school, aren't you?_" Zetsu asked. "_I refuse to be uncle to a drop-out._"

"_Yes, I am doing well enough to graduate on time,_" Meian said."_What I lack in concentration skills for lessons I make up for in physical ability, and when my primary is unable to finish all my work, my secondary is somewhat able to guide me._"

"_Excellent. Keep on working at it,_" Zetsu said. "_I know it must be hard for you—having such a dense primary, no offense_—"

"_None taken,_" Meian only half-lied.

"—_but you've been doing well regardless._"

"_Thank you, Uncle._"

Zetsu cleared his throat. "Meian-kun, before you go back, I'd like to ask a favor of you."

"Uh..." Meian couldn't think of what response that statement would need, so he simply nodded.

Zetsu reached into his cloak and pulled out three packages, two about the size of books and one only big enough to hold a few grapes. "Could you give these two to my daughters—your cousins, Yuumei and Naegi? They have some food in them and some spending money. I already gave most of the money I earned to Saikei, before the Kusanin caught up to me. _Infuriating nuisances, none of them probably remember how many times I helped protect their village._"

"Yeah," Meian said, taking the packages and repeating to himself, "Yuumei-chan and Naegi-chan."

"Thank you," Zetsu said. "And this," he lowered his voice a little, even though no one could hear him, "could you give it to Saikei?"

"Aunt Saikei," Meian echoed, accepting the smaller package. He looked up at Zetsu, confused. "Um, what are it? Is it?"

"These are seeds," Zetsu said softly, "for a _Hedera rhombea_—an ivy. I heard that Yuumei wanted them. She's turning ten in a few days."

Meian's eyes widened, and he cradled the seeds carefully in both hands as if they were as valuable as emeralds and as fragile as a dandelion seed head. "Oh," he said. He gave Zetsu a much sharper look. "_I suppose you wish for me not to tell Yuumei-chan of this?_"

Zetsu nodded. "I want to surprise her."

"Yeah. Um... okay." Meian nodded vaguely.

"Thank you, Meian." Zetsu crouched down to give his nephew another hug, and said, "_Don't you dare tell anyone but Yuumei, Naegi, and Saikei that you met me._"

"Yeah," Meian said. "Um... Bye, Uncle Zetsu."

Zetsu stood up. For a moment, he looked longingly towards the group surrounding the three ninja he'd had to kill, towards his family. Then he sank beneath the snow and became part of the dead grass beneath it, and Meian wandered back to the Kamibana clan, vaguely trying to remember exactly to whom he was supposed to give these three packages. He was lucky that his secondary remembered.

x

That night, Ukon told Sakon what had happened during guard duty, and what Meian had said to him. Ukon was terrified, and Sakon didn't blame him. He was scared for his brother as well. Meian _ate_ inferiors, he'd said so himself! What if he tried to hurt Ukon? Futago didn't sympathize with Sakon's concerns for his brother; he said there was absolutely no way Meian would eat Ukon, especially if he stayed with Sakon. The Kamibana clan didn't get its food by hunting live humans, and in any case, Meian was only a child—too young to have the strength or skill to kill someone, even an inferior.

Sakon and Ukon weren't convinced. And so, for the first time ever, Ukon missed school.

Halfway to school, Sakon stopped next to a building and behind a cart where no one would see him, took off his jacket, hat, and scarf, and let Ukon step out of his body. Sakon bundled Ukon up, and said, "I'll meet you right here when school's over, okay?"

"Okay," Ukon said. "I'll be here at three-thirty."

Sakon hesitated. "Is that when school ends?"

"Yeah."

"Okay." Sakon gave his brother a quick hug, and then ran off to school, twisting around to wave at Ukon as he went and then crossing his arms to try to keep warm.

Ukon watched his brother until he was out of sight, and then sniffed heavily, wiped his nose on Sakon's scarf, and wondered where he'd spend the rest of the day. It was too cold for him to stay outside, so he'd have to find a building to stay in. Preferably one that would give him a good view of the streets outside, so he'd know if a Kamibana were coming by and he could escape before it tried to eat him, and one where his father wouldn't come in and find out Ukon and Sakon weren't together.

Keeping his list in mind – warm, good view outside, safe from Daddy – Ukon trudged out into the cold streets to search.

He wandered for almost ten minutes in the cold, shoulders hunched up, arms crossed, hands stuck in his armpits to keep them warm. At last he saw a store with a familiar logo above the window: Wasanbon. This was the store where, a year ago, a girl in their class had given Ukon a taiyaki.

The same store where, a year and a half ago, Sakon and Ukon's mother had taken them, the day before she vanished.

Ukon stood for five, ten seconds staring at the logo, before he looked at the rest of the store. Large glass windows covered two walls; it would be easy for him to see outside. And he knew his father never went in there. He uncrossed his arms to grab the door handle with both cold hands, pulled it open, and slid inside.

The heat inside hit his skin like a hot iron on an ice cube. Ukon shivered in the warm air, flexing his stiff, cold fingers, and moved away from the windows. There was a big oven behind the counter giving off the waves of heat, and Ukon wanted to get close to it, hoping the warmth would start to sink into his skin rather than sear the surface.

He'd only been there a moment when a woman came up behind the counter, pulling off oven mitts. "Can I help you?" she asked suspiciously.

Ukon shook his head quickly. "N..." He had to shake his head and cough before he could rasp out, "No thanks. I don't got any money."

"Have any," the woman corrected automatically.

"Yeah." Ukon quickly backed away from the counter, found a table in the corner, and pulled himself into a seat facing the windows, so he could keep a watch out for any Kamibana.

The woman leaned over the counter to get a better look at Ukon. "Don't you have class?" she asked.

Ukon shook his head. "I'm not a student."

"Really?" She frowned. "What's your name?"

"U-um..." What if she recognized his name and knew he was an inferior? She could tell the Kamibana he was here without his brother to protect him. "Sakon."

"Sakon-kun," she repeated. "You look about my daughter's age. Why aren't you in school?"

"There's a scary guy in my class," Ukon said. "So I'm hiding."

The woman's frown turned sympathetic. "Oh. Poor thing, has that boy been picking on you?"

Ukon thought. Well, not really... "He says creepy things."

"I see," the woman said. "Have you tried talking to your teacher about him?"

"No."

"Maybe you should."

"But he won't help me," Ukon said. "I'm not a student."

The woman looked puzzled. "Huh."

Ukon wondered who this woman's daughter was. Then he remembered the girl from last year, the one who'd given him a taiyaki from this shop; maybe she'd gotten it from her mother? The same girl who said she'd been told that inferiors eat little girls...

"Hey!" Ukon said. "Is your daughter in Onshi-sensei's class?"

"Yes, she is," the woman said. "Do you know her?"

"Kinda," Ukon said.

"Chichiko's the first in our family to enter the ninja program," the woman said. She'd stopped looking puzzled and was now smiling proudly. "She's always been so athletic. She actually asked her father and me to let her enter the program. Onshi-san says she's already starting to learn how to channel chakra from the older students."

"Did you tell her that Shinken inferiors eat other girls?" Ukon asked. He slid out of his chair and shuffled up to the counter, and leaned against it for balance.

The woman appeared uncomfortable. "I... _might_ have... Why don't you ask your mother about that?" she asked.

"She..." Ukon looked down, and wiped his nose on his sleeve to keep from answering immediately. "She's... gone."

"Oh!" The woman covered her mouth. "Oh, I'm so sorry. Was... she a ninja?"

Ukon nodded. "Yeah. I don't know when she's gonna come back."

"Oh, sweetie. She's not going to..." She trailed off. "When did it happen?"

"Before first grade," Ukon said. "She ran away. Daddy says she's a missing-nin now."

"A missing..." She gasped. "Then she's... You're Shinken Mizuiri's child?"

Ukon nodded.

"I'm so sorry!" she said. She was starting to blush. "My goodness, to think Chichiko told you what I said... I'm very sorry, Sakon-kun. I didn't mean what I said about your clan, not at all. It's just something my mother always told me when I was a child, to make sure I wouldn't wander around after dark... Of course I didn't mean anything bad about your clan, it's just something you tell children. You understand."

"Yeah," Ukon said. "Thanks." He didn't understand, not really, but at least he knew this lady didn't think he'd try to eat anyone.

"That's just the stereotype about inferiors, you know," she continued. "Since they're so odd-looking and... well, _strange_ in the head. It's very easy to imagine that they'd be able to... well..." She straightened up and smiled at Ukon. "How would you like a taiyaki? On the house."

She had a nice smile. "Sure," Ukon said, "but can I have it inside?"

She gave him a blank look. "Uh... Sure thing, sweetie pie. What flavor do you like?"

"Chocolate," Ukon said.

In the end, Ukon got two taiyaki. He decided to come back here more often.

He never realized that the only reason this woman was still speaking to him was because she thought he was a Shinken dominant.

x

A/N: More names? Yes indeed. Yuumei means "dark and light" or "semidarkness," Naegi means "sapling," Saikei is a form of bonsai, and the chichi in Chichiko means "milk."


End file.
